Visit to the Millennium Seed Bank and the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew

UK, 7-21 January 2023

PhD Candidate Spyridon Oikonomidis (Research Assistant of our Project) made a two-weeks visit (January 7-21, 2023) at the Millennium Seed Bank (MSB), Kew Gardens, in the UK. During his stay SO had the opportunity to study the seed morphology of several orchid species from the Millennium Seed Bank Partnership collections and also attend the First Exceptional Species Training Course organised by the MSB at Wakehurst Place. S. Oikonomidis also had the chance to visit for two days the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew and get informed about some of the not publicly open collections and facilities. Moreover during his visit, SO shared information and demonstrated the double staining viability technique for assessing orchid seed viability to the lab team of the MSB.

Exceptional Species Training Course program

Photos
The Millennium Seed Bank
The Kew Palace
Habenaria rhodocheila
The Palm House
at the RBG KEW
Sequoiadendron giganteum
at the Wakehurst Place
Training on orchid seed
ex situ conservation
Training on germplasm cryopreservation
by Dr. Daniel Ballesteros
Demonstration of the double staining viability
method by S. Oikonomidis
Participants of the
Exceptional Species Training Course
The nuclear bomb proof
Seed Vault
Lodoicea maldivica seed turned into a furniture
(RBG Kew, Economic Collection)
Angraecum magdalenae
A glimpse of the Herbarium
(RBG KEW)
Training on fern spore
ex situ conservation
A glance into
Millennium Seed Bank
Visit at the Tropical Nursery
(RGB Kew, UK)