From Plant Press, Vol. 27, No. 1, January 2024.
Smithsonian Botany postdoctoral fellow, Alicia Talavera, shared research on North American grapes during a bilingual 'Expert Is In' session in the Hall of Mammals at the National Museum of Natural History on Friday, December 29. She aimed to convey these key messages to the visitors: (1) Natural history museums play a vital role in discovering new species, providing crucial information for understanding and protecting nature, and enhancing our crops and food; and (2) Technological advancements allow us to extract abundant information from specimens in museums. This essential information helps us understand grape diversity, and enables us to adapt and improve cultivars in response to new challenges like climate change, and for the conservation of nature.
Botany postdoctoral fellow, Alicia Talavera, shares research on grape diversity at an Expert Is In session in the Hall of Mammals, NMNH. (photo by Arthur H. Earle)
Jun Wen visited the production facility of the United States Botanic Garden on December 12 to check the Tetrastigma (Vitaceae) living collections. Tetrastigma species are host plants of parasitic Rafflesia (Rafflesiaceae), which have the largest flowers in the world.
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