BRAINCAKEEx-Situ Conservation of Plants
Ex situ conservation of plants means protecting plant species away from their natural habitat. The main methods are seed banks, botanic gardens and tissue culture.
Seed banks store large numbers of seeds for long periods. The Millennium Seed Bank at Wakehurst, run by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, holds seeds from tens of thousands of species. The method is:
1. Seeds are collected from wild plants, cleaned and checked.
2. They are dried to a low water content, so ice crystals do not form and damage the cells.
3. They are sealed and stored at about −20 °C, which slows metabolism so they stay alive for decades.
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More in Biodiversity
- Ethical Argument for Biodiversity
- Ecosystem Services
- Conserving Ecosystems
- Conservation
- Ex-situ Conservation of Animals
- In-Situ Conservation
- In-situ Conservation Strategies
- National Parks
All 22 lessons in Biodiversity · All Edexcel AS-level Biology topics