Episode 4
Prof Kathy Willis, director of science at Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, with an omnibus edition of her history of our relationship with plants during the early 20th century.
Prof Kathy Willis, Director of Science at Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, with an omnibus edition of her history of our changing relationship with plants from the early 20th century.
She examines new insights into plant hormones during the first few decades of the 20th century, the manipulation of which underpinned the perceived success of the so called Green Revolution; unlocking biodiversity through the creation of plant flora encyclopaedias - and their influence in conservation; the surprising benefits to emerge from the devastation wreaked by the great storm of 1987; what can be gained by preserving the diversity of plants through seed banking; the legacy of Arabidopsis - the first plant to have its entire genome sequenced.
Producer Adrian Washbourne.
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Plants: From Roots to Riches: Battling Bark and Beetle
Kathy Willis examines the origin and impact of Dutch elm disease across Europe.
Plants: From Roots to Riches: The Hunt for Diversity
Kathy Willis explores Nikolai Vavilov's pioneering search for unused varieties of crops.
Gardeners' Question Time: The Millennium Seed Bank
Eric Robson hosts GQT from the Millennium Seed Bank at Wakehurst Place.
Broadcast
- Fri 31 Oct 2014 21:00Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Delve deeper into plant science and find out more about plants featured in the series
The Power of Plants
Discover a selection of programmes relating to plants.
Podcast
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Plants: From Roots to Riches
Our relationship with plants: a major new history by Kew's science director Kathy Willis.