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From: "J.E. Shields" <jshields104 at INSIGHTBB.COM>
Subject: Ex Situ conservation
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One point touched on in my "Diatribe" in a previous message is "ex situ"
conservation -- preserving a wild species by growing it in a place other
than its native habitat.

I am a firm believer in ex situ conservation.  I hope that every person w=ho
grows any "botanical" species in their garden is contributing to ex situ
conservation.  I have tried to promote that by compiling a database of th=e
bulbous species and cultivars grown in any living collections, public,
institutional, and personal.  It is similar to the database of Arisaema
collections maintained by Ray for the members of this group.  In mine, an=y
geophytic species (bulb, corm, tuber, rhizome) is included.

Sad to say, very few people seem willing to take the trouble to record wh=at
they grow and where it came from.  Many of those who do keep such records
are not willing to share them with anyone else.  I applaud this group for
making such records mandatory for membership; and I admire Ray for doing
the paperwork.

If anyone in this group wishes to contribute their collection data to the
bulb collections database, please contact me privately at
<jshields104 at insightbb.com> .  The database is generally available only t=o
those individuals and institutions which have contributed data to it.  Th=e
function is supposed to do for private collections what the databases of
the AABGA (American Association of Botanic Gardens and Arboreta) and a
similar European group have done -- to keep an inventory of species
represented in living collections.  The aims are to preserve living
species, promote breeding of species, and maintain genetic diversity with=in
species.

Jim Shields
in central Indiana

*************************************************
Jim Shields             USDA Zone 5             Shields Gardens, Ltd.
P.O. Box 92              WWW:    http://www.shieldsgardens.com/
Westfield, Indiana 46074, USA                   Tel. +1-317-896-3925