Abstract
Dry seeds of many orchid species, when stored at low temperatures, are capable of maintaining high levels of viability for many years, supporting orchid seed banking as a valuable part of emerging integrated conservation strategies. The Orchid Seed Science and Sustainable Use (OSSSU) network has already stored over 300+ species across 26 countries around the world. Its future ambition to store seeds representing a minimum of one thousand species in the next five years, and to expand the network to include more institutes and countries, provides an example of what can be achieved by a small dedicated group, willing to share their technical expertise and to develop a deeper understanding of the underlying science. Recent work indicates that it may also be possible to store orchid pollen of some species for a minimum of six years under similar conditions to those used for orchid seeds, thereby facilitating pollen exchange between collections. OSSSU partners in a number of countries have already demonstrated that raising plants from stored seeds can be used successfully in reintroduction projects.
Highlights
With around 153 taxa, Europe has an orchid flora roughly equivalent in numbers to North America excluding the sub-tropical state of Florida
22 orchid species restricted to the mountain rainforest in the Montebello region of Mexico were lost when their habitat was completely destroyed by fire in an area where fire was used in the management of agricultural and cattle grazing [4]
Successful germination of orchid seeds inevitably leads to protocorms that can be transferred to larger culture vessels, and perhaps different culture media, for 'growing on' until they are sufficiently large to be transplanted into a suitable medium or compost
Summary
With around 153 taxa (including some sub-species), Europe has an orchid flora roughly equivalent in numbers to North America excluding the sub-tropical state of Florida. Climate change predictions include warmer winters in Northern Europe and hotter and drier summers in the Mediterranean region, with an increase in the number of heat and drought events [2] Orchids, with their reliance on specific symbiotic fungi at different stages in their life-cycles, specialized habitats and pollinators are sensitive to environmental change and can be a key indicator of the overall health of the environment. A small number of such seed banks would provide a valuable resource for both horticulture and research, and maintain the possibility of future reintroductions The value of such collections to the scientific community could be considerably enhanced if the percentage germination of full seeds was counted immediately post harvest and before the seeds were dried and stored at low temperature. Isolation techniques, including seed baiting, are widely employed and fungal isolates can be stored at low temperatures [14]
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