Conservation Hedges:
Modern-Day Arks
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24823/Sibbaldia.2019.268Abstract
In May 2014, the first planting of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) conservation hedge took place, when the Reverend Anne Brennan planted a tree which had originated as a cutting from the ancient and historic European yew, Taxus baccata, in the churchyard of her church at Fortingall, Perthshire. This is one of almost 2,000 plants that will eventually form a conservation hedge of significant scientific and conservation value. The International Conifer Conservation Programme (ICCP), based at RBGE, has actively sought other opportunities to establish conservation hedges via its network of ‘safe sites’, using a range of different conifer species. This initiative is being driven by the potential for relatively large numbers of genotypes from a single threatened species to be stored in a linear space. It is well established that seed banks have a great capacity to store large amounts of genetic diversity, so we should simply consider conservation hedges in a similar manner. These super-hedges cram relatively large amounts of genetic material into a small space, capturing a great range of wild traits and potentially contributing to the restoration of wild populations. To date, conservation hedges have been planted at five separate locations at RBGE’s Edinburgh Garden as well as at four ICCP external ‘safe sites’. Although this article focuses on the establishment of conservation hedges using conifers, we have also highlighted some conservation hedges that comprise non-coniferous species.
References
ANCIENT YEW GROUP (2012–2018). Available online: http://www.ancient-yew.org (accessed June 2017).
BAILETTI, M. (2016). Setos de Conservación – venas verdes en el desierto Peruano. Perú CONICA Conservamos Ica. Available online: http://www.conservamosica.org/conica/setos-deconservacion-venas-verdes-en-el-desierto-peruano (accessed September 2017).
BARR, C.J. & PARR, T.W. (1994). Hedgerows: Linking ecological research and countryside policy. In: WATT, T.A. & BUCKLEY, G.P. (eds) Hedgerow Management and Nature Conservation. Wye College Press, Wye, pp. 119–136.
BAUDRY, J., BUNCE, R.G.H. & BUREL, F. (2000). Hedgerows: An international perspective on their origin, function and management. Journal of Environmental Management, 60(1): 7–22.
BENHAM, S.E., HOUSTON DURRANT, T., CAUDULLO, G. & DE RIGO, D. (2016). Taxus baccata in Europe: Distribution, habitat, usage and threats. In: SAN-MIGUEL-AYANZ, J., DE RIGO, D., CAUDULLO, G., HOUSTON DURRANT, T. & MAURI, A. (eds) European Atlas of Forest Tree Species. Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg.
BEVAN-JONES, R. (2002). The Ancient Yew, A History of Taxus baccata. Oxbow Books, Oxford.
CHANDLER, J. (1992). Old men’s fancies: The case of the churchyard yew, FLS News, 15: 3–6.
CHRISTIAN, T. (2008). A pilot study for the yew conservation hedge project at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Unpublished BSc thesis, RBGE.
CHRISTIAN, T. (2012). Xanthocyparis vietnamensis. International Dendrology Society Yearbook 2012, pp. 50–54.
CONNOR, S.E., ARAÚJO, J., VAN DER KNAAP, W.O. & VAN LEEUWEN, J.F.N. (2012). A long-term perspective on biomass burning in the Serra da Estrela, Portugal. Quaternary Science Reviews, 55: 114–124.
CRITCHFIELD, W.B. & LITTLE, E.L. JR (1966). Geographic distribution of the pines of the world. US Department of Agriculture, Miscellaneous Publication 991.
CROSS, J. & LYNN, D. (2013). Results of a monitoring survey of yew woodland. Irish Wildlife Manuals, No. 72. National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of the Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Dublin.
DEFRA (1997). The Hedgerows Regulations 1997. A Guide to the Law and Good Practice. HMSO. Available online: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/438652/hedgerow__guide_part_1.pdf (accessed September 2017).
ESRI (1999–2017). ArcGIS Desktop: Release 10.5.1. Environmental Systems Research Institute, Redlands, CA. Available online: http://desktop.arcgis.com/en/arcmap (accessed March 2018).
FARJON, A. (2013a). Pinus radiata. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013: e.T42408A2977955. Available online: http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T42408A2977955.en (accessed September 2017).
FARJON, A. (2013b). Taxus baccata. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013: e.T42546A2986660. Available online: http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T42546A2986660.en (accessed September 2017).
FARJON, A. & FILER, D. (2013). An Atlas of the World’s Conifers: An Analysis of their Distribution, Biogeography, Diversity and Conservation Status. Brill, Leiden.
GARCÍA, D., ZAMORA, R., HÓDAR, J.A., GÓMEZ, J.M. & CASTRO, J. (2000) Yew (Taxus baccata L.) regeneration is facilitated by fleshy-fruited shrubs in Mediterranean environments. Biological Conservation 95: 31–38.
GARDNER, M. (2013). Prumnopitys andina. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013: e.T35934A2861427. Available online: http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T35934A2861427.en (accessed September 2017).
GARDNER, M.F. (2016). The International Conifer Conservation Programme. International Dendrological Society Yearbook 2015, pp. 186–195.
HAGENEDER, F. (2007). Yew. A History. Sutton, Stroud.
HECHENLEITNER, V.P., GARDNER, M.F., THOMAS, P.I., ECHEVERRĺA, C., ESCOBAR, B., BROWNLESS, P. & MARTĺNEZ, C. (2005). Plantas Amenazadas del Centro-Sur de Chile. Distribución, Conservación y Propagación. Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, and RBGE, Edinburgh.
HILLS, T. (2005). Lost yews. Available online: http://www.ancient-yew.org/userfiles/file/Deliberate%20felling1.pdf (accessed September 2017).
HILLS, T. & HINDSON, T. (2010). Ancient, Veteran, Notable and Extraordinary. A new classification of the yew population of Great Britain and Ireland. Available online: http://www.ancient-yew.org/userfiles/file/Protocol1fc.pdf (accessed September 2017).
HINDSON, T. (n.d.). Historic Churchyard Yews. Available online: http://www.buildingconservation.com/articles/churchyard-yews/churchyard-yews.htm (accessed September 2017).
KONTNY, P. (1937). Z. przeszłości (Taxus baccata L.). Sylwan, 5(1): 29–68.
KORORI, S.A.A., MATINIZADEH, M. & TEIMOURI, M. (2001). Untersuchungen über Eibe (Taxus baccata L.) Mycorrhizen im Norden des Iran. Der Eibenfreund, 8: 165–167.
LETHEREN, A., HILL, S., SALIE, J., PARKMAN, J. & CHEN, C. (2017). A little bug with a big bite: impact of hemlock woolly adelgid infestations on forest ecosystems in the Eastern USA and potential control strategies. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 14(4): 438.
LIBBY, W.J. (1990). Genetic conservation of radiata pine and coast redwood. Forest Ecology Management, 35: 109.
LIBBY, W.J., BROWN, A.G. & FIELDING, J.M. (1972). Effects of hedging radiata pine on production, rooting, and early growth of cuttings. New Zealand Journal of Forest Science, 2(2): 263–283.
MAUDSLEY, M.J., MARSHALL, E.J.P. & WEST, T.M. (2000). Guidelines for hedge management to improve the conservation value of different types of hedge. DEFRA. Available online: http://www.agroecol.co.uk/Assets/HedgeGuidelines3.pdf (accessed September 2017).
MCGEENEY, A. (2014). Ancient & Veteran yews in the cultures of the British Isles. Proceedings IV International Yew Workshop, pp. 281–288.
MEIER, E. (2015). Wood! Identifying and Using Hundreds of Woods Worldwide. The Wood Database. Available online: https://www.wood-database.com/ (accessed September 2017).
MILL, K. (1999). The Cumbrian Yew Book – A Millennium Celebration. Solway Rural Initiative, Aspatria.
MOIR, A., HINDSON, T., HILLS, T. & HADDLESEY, R. (2013). The exceptional yew trees of England, Scotland and Wales. Quarterly Journal of Forestry, 107(203): 185–191.
NGUYEN, D.T.L. & THOMAS, P. (2004). Conifers of Vietnam: An Illustrated Field Guide. World Publishing House, Hanoi.
NGUYEN, T.H., PHAN, K.L., NGUYEN, D.T.L., THOMAS, P.I., FARJON, A., AVERYANOV, L. & REGALADO, J. JR. (2004). Vietnam Conifers: Conservation Status Review 2004. Fauna & Flora International, Vietnam Programme, Hanoi.
PANKHURST, M., A’HARA, S. & COTTRELL, J. (2015). The Fraternal Four. British Wildlife, 26(3): 178–182.
POLLARD, E., HOOPER, M.D. & MOORE, N.W. (1974). Hedges. Collins, London.
PRIDNYA, M. (2002). Taxus baccata in the Caucasus region. Der Eibenfreud, 9: 146–166.
RAB, M. (2015). We love yew. Available online: http://www.theheritagealliance.org.uk/update/we-love-yew-new-campaign-launched (accessed September 2017).
ROMO, A., ISZKUŁO, G., TALEB, M.S., WALES, Ł. & BORATYNSKI, A. (2017). Taxus baccata in Morocco: A tree in regression in its southern extreme. Dendrobiology, 78: 63–74.
SCHIRONE, B., FERREIRA, R.C., VESSELLA, F., SCHIRONE, A., PIREDDA, R. & SIMEONE, M.C. (2010). Taxus baccata in the Azores: A relict form at risk of imminent extinction. Biodiversity Conservation, 19(6): 1547–1565.
SPECTOR, T., THOMAS, P. & DETERMANN, R. (2011). Taxus floridana. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2011: e.T30965A9584928. Available online: http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-2.RLTS.T30965A9584928.en (accessed August 2017).
SPINDLER, K. (1994). The Man in the Ice. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London.
STOKES, J. & RODGER, D. (2004). The Heritage Trees of Britain and Northern Ireland. Constable & Robinson, London.
SVENNING, J.C. & MAGARD, E. (1999). Population ecology and conservation status of the last natural population of English yew Taxus baccata, Denmark. Biological Conservation, 88(2): 173–182.
THOMAS, P.A. & POLWART, L. (2003). Taxus baccata L. Journal of Ecology, 91(3): 489–524.
VACIK, H., OITZINGER, G. & GEORG, F. (2001). Population viability risk management (PVRM) zur Evaluierung von in situ Erhaltunsstrategien der Eibe (Taxus baccata) in Bad Bleiberg. Forst-wissenschaftliches Centralblatt, 120: 390–405.
WALTER, K.S. & O’NEAL, M.J. (1985–2018. Version 6.8) BG-BASE [Collection Management Software]. BG-BASE Inc. & BG-BASE (UK) Ltd. Available online: http://www.bgbase.com (accessed September 2017).
WILLIAMSON, R. (1975). The Great Yew Forest. The Natural History of Kingley Vale. Macmillan, London.
WOODLAND TRUST (2014). Hedgerows and hedgerow trees. Wood Wise Woodland Conservation News, Summer 2014: 2–8.
WORDSWORTH, W. (1888). William Wordsworth. The Complete Poetical Works. Macmillan and Co., London.
WORSØE, E. (1985). Er taks (Taxus baccata L.) vildtvoksende i Denmark?. Flora og Fauna, 91: 22–26.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Please read our Open Access, Copyright and Permissions policies for more information.
