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Hydnora bolinii

Odd parasitic plant with fleshy flowers identified as new species

18 January 2023

A review of hydnora plants has identified one new species based on preserved specimens and reinstated two others, bringing the total number to 10


water lily

Newly identified species is the world’s largest known giant water lily

4 July 2022

A giant water lily that grows in Bolivia has been confirmed as a distinct species that is the world's largest water lily - now named Victoria boliviana


mignonette leek orchid

Rediscovered orchid was presumed extinct for almost a century

13 April 2022

The mignonette leek orchid, which was last documented in 1933, has been rediscovered in Australia during surveys conducted after the Black Summer wildfires in 2019-20


Beautiful images illustrate the dawn of modern botany

Beautiful images illustrate the dawn of modern botany

9 March 2022

These delicately detailed representations of plants by a founding figure of modern botany are given a new lease of life in the book Leonhart Fuchs: The New Herbal


Uvariopsis dicaprio

Newly identified tree species named in honour of Leonardo DiCaprio

6 January 2022

An evergreen tree native to Cameroon’s tropical Ebo forest has been given the scientific name Uvariopsis dicaprio and is the first new plant species to be described in 2022


Date palm

‘Near impossible’ plant-growing technique could revolutionise farming

22 December 2021

For the first time, grafting has been made to work in monocots, a type of plant including oats, wheats and bananas – and it might improve disease tolerance among these important crops


tobacco plant

Insect-killing plant found by Australian highway is new to science

10 August 2021

A newly described species of wild tobacco that scientists found growing next to a truck stop in Western Australia is covered in sticky glands that trap and kill small insects


Cherry tomato plants

Tomatoes have a kind of nervous system that warns about attacks

20 July 2021

Plants may use their sap transport networks to shuttle charged ions, acting as a kind of simple nervous system to turn on defences against microbes


flowers

Taller and prettier plants are more likely to be studied by botanists

10 May 2021

Plants that are taller and more attractive are more likely to be studied by botanists, suggests an analysis of research conducted over the past 45 years


Extinct date palms grown from 2000-year-old seeds found near Jerusalem

Extinct date palms grown from 2000-year-old seeds found near Jerusalem

5 February 2020

An extinct variety of date palm tree has been grown from ancient seeds preserved in the Judean desert for 2000 years, the oldest seeds ever germinated


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