| Abstract Detail
Tropical Biology Nyenya, Ratidzayi [1]. Blooming where they are planted: A study of Dracaena in cultivation in an indoor tropical forest. Dracaena L. is a genus of about 116 species that occur in subtropical and tropical regions of the world. Various species of the genus are distributed in Africa, Madagascar , Asia, Socotra , Macaronesia , Central America , Cuba , Australia and the Pacific islands. Molecular studies have provided evidence for the lumping together of Sansevieria , Pleomele and Dracaena. We observed Dracaena species in bloom at Muttart Conservatory to understand the morphology of this iconic genus, its various characters and character states. observations based on herbarium specimens alone have not provided all the answers on morphology because the genus is underrepresented in herbaria and that most characters change significantly on drying. Observations made on living collections ofDracaerna augment efforts made using herbarium studies and field studies in providing insights into the morphology of the genus, highlighting the importance of living collections in plant taxonomy. Observing Dracaena grow and smelling the blooms in an indoor tropical forest, away from their natural habitat has been instrumental in clarifying our understanding f morphology of the genus and their prefered growing conditions. We present our observations on the morphology, phenology and other qualitative characters that have informed our understanding of the species. Our observations reveal the important role of botanical gardens in informing botanical studies and in providing a modified form of fieldwork, where travelling to observe plants in their natural habitats is not feasible .
1 - University of Oslo
Keywords:
Dracaena
morphology
bloom
anthesis
inflorescence.
Presentation Type: Poster
Session: P, Tropical Biology Posters
Location: Virtual/Virtual
Date: Thursday, July 30th, 2020
Time: 5:00 PM Time and date to be determined
Number: PTB007
Abstract ID:849
Candidate for Awards:None |
