Visit to Wakehurst Place and the Millennium Seed Bank

Up  early last Thursday to catch the train  from Victoria to Haywards Heath, then the bus to Wakehurst Place to meet members joining the tour of the Millennium  Seed Bank (MSB).  Weather fine, some cloud but dry.

The public Exhibition Hall at MSB

By 10.45am 22 Members and friends had gathered at the entrance where we were met by Michael Way, Head of Collecting & Network Support at the MSB who welcomed us and lead us through to the lecture room in the Seed Bank and gave us an introduction to the history and purpose of the Seed Bank. We were then introduced to Tom Heller who had been on two trips to the Falkland Islands collecting seed. His talk focused on the work of the MSB in the Islands and was illustrated by pictures taken during his visits. On our trip round the laboratories we saw seeds being tested for germination and then we descended a spiral staircase to the actual vault where thousands of seed samples are stored  including some from the Falkland Islands. Of 177 species in the Islands 155 are potentially suitable for dry storage and of these 109 have been collected;  of the 13 endemic species in the islands 12 are already in the bank  and of 23 species  that are Red-listed in the 1956 list of threatened species 10 have been collected.

Sculpture of the seed of Devil's Claw

Inside the vault we saw how the seeds were finally prepared and packed for storage and we were able to look through into the main storage area where the temperature is maintained at -20C.
At the end of the visit our Chairman, David Tatham, thanked Michael Way and Tom Heller for a most interesting talk and tour.

After viewing the area of the MSB which is open to the public we moved to the Stables restaurant for a meal and an opportunity to meet other members of the party. Members were then free to explore the gardens at Wakehurst Place before making their way home. The only rain shower passed through whilst we were in the Seed Bank! The gardens were full of colour although we didn't have time to explore the whole site I am sure many members will be visiting again in the future.