Perthshire to become home for endangered South American trees

nature: Conservation project aims to save endangered trees

Some of South America’s rarest and most valuable trees will be planted across Perthshire in a bid to save them from destruction.

Swathes of the region will be planted with species from Chile following a botanical rescue mission undertaken by teams from the Perthshire Conifer Conservation programme, the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) and Benmore Botanic Garden.

They made a “significant seed collection” from a range of conifers during their visit, including the Chilean Plum Yew, and discovered two previously unknown populations of this threatened species.

The seeds recovered will now be grown in specialist facilities at the botanic gardens.

Tom Christian, project officer of Perthshire Conifer Conservation Programme, said: “Once they are large enough the resulting young plants will be distributed around the network of International Conifer Conservation Programme (ICCP) safe sites.

“This will include a significant portion being introduced to sites in the Perthshire Conifer Conservation Programme and National Tree Collections of Scotland (NTCS) networks, where they will be grown on in perpetuity.

“We were very surprised and excited to find the new populations of the Chilean Plum Yew.

“The one in the central depression is particularly significant as it is the only one in that area of Chile — all the others are confined to Andean valleys and just one in the coastal cordillera.”

Chile relies upon hydropower for around half of its energy and over the past decade has been working to increase that.

For many years the country’s government worked on a hugely controversial mega-hydropower scheme that would have resulted in the construction of five new dams and thousands of hectares of the previously protected Patagonian region flooded.

That plan was scrapped in the face of widespread opposition, but deliberate flooding from dam construction has nonetheless taking its toll on plant species across the country.

The Patagonian region is known for its national parks, reserves and protected areas together with its stunning mixed landscape, which includes forests, glaciers, islands and mountains.

Once they are large enough the resulting young plants will be distributed around the network of ICCP safe sites. TOM CHRISTIAN