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A Passion for Australian Plants
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Finding my way in the NSW Seedbank
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I work at Mount
Annan Botanic Garden in south west Sydney with a dedicated team of horticultural
scientists who are steadily building on our knowledge of Australian native
plants. We work under the guidance of Dr Cathy Offord to ‘domesticate’ species
such as flannel flowers, waratahs and most recently, the Wollemi Pine, by
selecting suitable genetic lines and researching their requirements in
cultivation. The group also plays an integral role in the conservation of plant
species native to NSW by storing seeds or living plants and collecting valuable
biological information about each species.
Seed storage and research at Mount
Annan has recently been given a boost through the SeedQuest NSW program, which
aims to collect, store and research seed of 250 species each year. SeedQuest is
a partnership with the Millennium Seed Bank Project of the Royal Botanic Gardens
Kew in the UK (also featured in Sarah Ashmore’s Wisenet article in April 2005).
I’ve been working as a researcher in the SeedQuest project for about 18 months, with the task of improving germination, breaking dormancy and working out the lifespan of seeds stored at the
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Amelia examining seeds under the microscope. |
NSW Seedbank. I feel very lucky
to work with our native flora and am constantly amazed at the relative scarcity
of information about species literally on our doorstep, our roadsides and in our
parks and reserves.
My job is a natural extension of my
long-held passion for plants, particularly Australian native plants. I was lucky
to have parents who took my four sisters and I bushwalking in the Royal National
Park and an extended family who encouraged our curiosity about natural things.
On one memorable occasion, my science-teacher uncle helped us microwave pine
cones to extract the winged seeds, and then toss the seeds from the highest
chair we could stand on to watch them ‘helicopter’ to the ground. My nana, the
owner of the microwave, was very tolerant… It turns out that seeds played a
special role in our nana’s family, as her distant ancestors were American
pilgrims who sewed seeds into the hems of their dresses to keep them safe as
they toiled along the Oregon Trail.
After studying physics and chemistry
(no biology!) at high school, I began a Horticultural Science degree at the
University of Sydney. I gained a new appreciation for the complexity of plants
and took subjects on native plants to supplement my knowledge of traditional
horticultural crops. I investigated the horticultural potential of an Australian
native pea (Swainsona sejuncta) under the joint supervision of staff at
Mount Annan and the University for my Honours project. My task was to work out
whether this beautiful but alarmingly robust and prolifically seeding species
had significant weed potential. Even with the data behind us and recalling the
phrase “One year’s seeding, seven years’ weeding”, it’s no easy job convincing
the horticulturalists that the colourful pea is not the best addition to their
garden!
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Sorting waratah seed at the NSW Seedbank. Foreground to background – Amelia Martyn, Leahwyn Seed and Richard Johnstone. |
I then worked as a
research assistant in a mycology lab for a year and decided that I wanted to
experience the full spectrum of research, from planning to collecting and
analysing data and communicating results. So I returned to university, where my
Honours supervisors offered me the opportunity to do a PhD study on waratahs.
Commercial flower growers were concerned about a problem called “bract
browning”, where the bracts surrounding the waratah inflorescence turned brown
prior to harvest. After almost four years, I could explain to growers that bract
browning was similar to sunburn, and
could be reduced simply by shading the waratah plants before the flowers opened
in spring. The physiological explanation for bract browning begins with light
damage (chronic photoinhibition) leading to pigment loss, probable oxidative
damage to other cell components and eventually, cell death and necrosis seen as
browning.
In my work and studies, I’ve had great support and encouragement from my (mostly female) supervisors and have been a mentee and
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Conservation and horticultural research group
at Mount Annan. |
mentor in formal programs. I’m
keen to show this kind of support to others and to encourage people to take make
the most of opportunities that come their way; so I’ve become a Spokeswoman for
Mount Annan. All NSW public sector agencies are required to operate a
Spokeswomen’s Program with the aim of identifying and acting on matters
affecting women, providing information and professional development
opportunities and increasing gender equity in organisations. This has given me
the opportunity to meet great women throughout NSW who are passionate about
women’s issues and conservation (Mount Annan Botanic Garden, along with Mount
Tomah and the Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney are all part of the NSW Department of
Environment and Conservation).
Being a spokeswoman at work and a
member of Wisenet, and coming from a large family with four sisters (at present,
one engineer, one camera person, one artist and one determined high school
student), reassures me that I’m connected to a network of strong, intelligent
and caring women. I’m optimistic that by joining together and supporting each
other we can really make a difference in our world!
Resources
NSW Seedbank at Mount Annan
Botanic Garden
http://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/mount_annan_botanic_garden
Horticultural Research
http://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/conservation_research/horticulture_research
Spokeswomen’s Program
http://www.premiers.nsw.gov.au/WorkAndBusiness/WorkingForGovernment/EqualEmploymentOpportunity/SpokeswomensProgram/
