Comments on/about Rewilding Torreya taxifolia


  • June 14, 2010 / by Connie Barlow, Torreya Guardian/ Comments filed on USF&WS official Recovery Plan Update on Torreya taxifolia

    In May 2010 USF&WS staff overseeing the recovery plan under the Endangered Species Act for Torreya taxifolia gathered a meeting of researchers, managers, and landowners to review their actions to date and recommend future actions for an update of the recovery plan. Though not active within the terms of the management plan, Torreya Guardians was invited to participate, so Russell Regnery and I (Connie Barlow) listened and shared our thoughts by phone call-in during the day-long conference. We felt welcome and well heard. Afterwards, I decided to follow-up with print commments of my own and to alert several scientists with expertise in this realm of the opportunity to send in comments as well. Two did so. I have added a new page to this website titled, Torreya taxifolia Recovery Plan Under the Endangered Species Act: Spring 2010 solicitation of comments on assisted migration, which contains six links, including: Comments by Connie Barlow; Comments by Prof Sarah Reichard; Comments by Josh Donlan (of Advanced Conservation Strategies).

  • May 12, 2010 / by Connie Barlow, Torreya Guardian/ My participation in the T. taxifolia recovery group conference yesterday and submission of recommendations

    Yesterday I participated by phone in an all-day meeting initiated and led by USF&WS staff in charge of updating the official recovery plan for Torreya taxifolia under the Endangered Species Act. Russ Regnery and I were the two Torreya Guardians who accepted the open invitation from Vivian Negron-Ortiz (at USF&WS) to voice our views and listen to the others. From what I heard, none of the other invited participants were advocating that the existing management plan be changed to include "translocation" to North Carolina or anywhere else beyond Florida and Georgia and the ex-situ locations of the potted seedlings and parent materials housed in other institutions. My sense was that, lacking a deep-time perspective, this resistance was to be expected. Thus I submitted an 8-page document with the primary intent of cataloging the arguments and giving the published citations and quotations for the USF&WS to adopt an entirely updated standard of what "native range" and "native habitat" can be re-interpreted to mean, in order to do justice to the deep-time perspective -- which, incidentally, may be vital for conservation to retain allegiance to "native" geographies even as climate shifts. Anyone can access this report in in pdf online now: "The Torreya taxifolia USF&WS Recovery Plan Process: An Opportunity to Shift to a Deep-Time Perspective of Native Habitat"

  • May 5, 2010 / by Connie Barlow, Torreya Guardian/ May/June issue of Audubon Magazine features Torreya Guardians assisted migration work

    "Guardian Angels" is the title of Janet Marinelli's article, published nearly two years after she accompanied a half dozen Torreya Guardians on our "rewilding" efforts in North Carolina of 31 seedling Torreyas. Here is how I summarized her report on the assisted migration links page of this website:

    In-depth exploration of "the biggest controversy in contemporary conservation science." Engagingly written for both a popular and professional audience, journalist Marinelli draws from her interviews with leading scientists, horticulturalists, and activists to present the core arguments for and against assisted migration. A site visit to an endangered plant breeding facility (the Atlanta Botanical Garden) is paired in the article with Marinelli's eye-witness description of "eco-vigilante" action, when the loose-knit citizens group Torreya Guardians intentionally planted into forested landscapes of mountainous North Carolina 31 seedlings of the highly endangered Florida Torreya — an assisted migration of some 400 miles northward of historically known native habitat.

  • April 26, 2010 / by Michael Heim, science teacher at Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe High School, Hayward WI / All Torreya taxifolia planted in N. Wisconsin in 2009 died by spring 2010

    All of the Torreya taxifolia ended up dying and the parts of Taxus floridana exposed at -12F did get killed. Funny it took until now to show up. Anyway, it was a good learning experience and shows that these highly endemic spp. became that way for a reason during the Pleistocene or perhaps even before. On the other hand, maybe their northern populations were eliminated by environmental change and only the less hardy southernmost ones survived. Guess we might never know. The good news is that several Torreya nucifera came through in perfect shape! The BOX HUCKLEBERRIES also came through splendidly. My biology students collected baseline data on them last week and I'm thinking they'll put on lots of new growth & runners this summer if the drought doesn't stay too severe.
        EDITOR'S NOTE: See Mike's initial emails below of March 17, March 5, and February 12, 2010. See also his 2-page report on this Tertiary Rewilding project in Wisconsin and Heim's photographs with captions of this project.

  • April 7, 2010 / by Connie Barlow, Torreya Guardian/ posting of 1986 USFWS official plan for managing T. taxifolia

    "I just linked several pages of this website to the official 1986 management plan of the USFWS for managing Torreya taxifolia as an endangered species. Two points within it especially interested me. First, Torreya Guardian Lee Barnes is cited in the references of that management plan for his 1983 and 1985 PhD work on clonal propagation of this species. (See p. 20 of the PDF report.) Second, on p. 4, habitat description, the Japanese species of genus Torreya is listed as growing as 'an understory element of beech forests in Japan.' This gives me great hope for the success of the 31 seedlings of T. taxifolia we planted in July 2008 near Waynesville NC, under a high deciduous canopy."

  • April 5, 2010 / by Vivian Negron-Ortiz, botanist USFWS, Panama City FL / 5-year status review of endangered Florida Torreya due July 10; working group solicited

    "The Service would like to assemble a recovery working group of those currently working on, and knowledgeable about, the natural history of Florida Torreya. The goal of this working group would be to provide input and recommendations to prevent the extinction of this species and work toward recovery. Recommendations from the working group will be incorporated into the 5-year status review which is due in July 2010. This working group would discuss past, current, and planned activities and their relationship to the recovery actions stipulated in the Recovery plan. This is important to evaluate so we don't duplicate recovery efforts. If you are interested in participating in this working group, please respond to me by 21 April 2010. Also, please advise me of other persons who should be included that I have omitted. I'm hoping to finalize the participant list by the end of this month, and propose to meet here at the Panama City Field Office in mid-May (May 11 or 12, or both if needed)." Editor's Note: Torreya Guardians is seeking to find a nearby representative who can attend this important meeting. The existing USFWS management plan for T. taxifolia (dated 1986) can be accessed via USFWS site or the TorreyaGuardians website here.

  • March 27, 2010 / by Jeff Zahner, horticulturalist, Cashiers/Highlands NC / Torreya taxifolia doing well

    "I just received a link to the Bob Zahner tree [at the Waynesville NC Torreya site planted in 2008] from my mom. It's such a pretty tree and it made me happy. I wanted to thank you for all you are doing to help the Torreya and wish you well for the coming Spring — it's finally here! Here at 4000 ft our Torreya are healthy and were missed by the ice-laden pine branches crashing around them. The littlest ones were completely covered with snow for five weeks straight but seem to be fine."

  • March 5, 2010 / by Michael Heim, science teacher at Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe High School, Hayward WI / Notification of journal article authored on "rewilding" evergreen Box Huckleberry of eastern USA to its presumed pre-glacial habitat in nothern Wisconsin

    EDITOR'S NOTE: The photo-rich, 2-page article was published in the Winter 2010 issue of and titled, "Return of the Ericads: Students Dig and Reestablish a Prehistoric Species". Heim's project is bold and apparently exciting to the tribal students for the deep-time perspective that suggests this "eastern" USA plant may be deeply native to their own tribal lands. The article is posted here on this website in PDF. Species name is Gaylussacia brachycera.

  • March 17, 2010 / by Michael Heim, science teacher at Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe High School, Hayward WI / Preliminary report of winter survival of Torreya taxifolia, Taxodium, and Taxus floridana plantings in nothern Wisconsin

    EDITOR's NOTE: See Feb 12 comment below for the context of this report. Click here for a PHOTO-ESSAY WEBPAGE OF MIKE HEIM'S TERTIARY REWILDING PROJECT IN WISCONSIN.

    "I checked [the Torreya taxifolia rooted clones] yesterday (the snow just melted off them) and they didn't do as well as I'd hoped. The foliage is fine, but many appear to have rotted or broken off at the base. The best-looking one though was planted far from the rest in a richer soil on a hardwood north slope above a frog pond and it appears okay. Strange, but the Taxus floridana with the torreyas are all doing extremely well with no winter damage, even though they grew much larger than the torreyas.
       "Okay, here's something else. Taxodium had a much more widespread range during the Tertiary (and somewhat during the last interglacial) than at present, probably due to its floating seeds which naturally disperse downstream. Well, I've planted over a hundred seedlings (seed from IL) again last summer in our creek, since the older ones have done extremely well in our beaver meadow (seedlings were underwater for a year and subsequently grew just fine!) and our small sphagnum bog. I'm planting another flat of them out this spring. Should look quite antediluvial some years from now, eh?...especially with long strands of Usnea lichen hanging from the branches (the lichens really love baldcypress)."

    MARCH 18 UPDATE: "Yesterday after work I took a good hard look at the torreyas. I think that a couple more are fine, as they popped right up from being pressed down to the ground from the snowpack. I also took a good hard look at the Wollemia and it looks good...certainly no foliar damage from being exposed to 0F before being covered by snow for 3.5 months! Still, these observations are pretty premature and I wouldn't hazard to say definitively who is alive and who is dead for another couple of weeks.

  • February 12, 2010 / by Michael Heim, science teacher at Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe High School, Hayward WI / Torreya taxifolia and Taxus floridana clones rewilded into tribal forest of nothern Wisconsin

    "I planted out seven clones of T. taxifolia and one of Taxus floridana (rooted cuttings obtained with the help of a friend) up here in the northwoods of Wisconsin this past spring [2009]. All grew vigorously over the summer. When winter came they were exposed at 0F and since then have been covered deeply with snow. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that at least some of them will turn out to be hardy here as low shrubs. I'm wondering if Torreya grew here before the Pleistocene. Guess I might find out!"

  • February 2, 2010 / by Connie Barlow / Reviving Dehydrated Torreya Seeds by Hydrating

    While preparing the 300 Torreya taxifolia seeds from Fall 2009 Biltmore harvest for shipment, Lee Barnes strove to rehydrate the 'floaters', since advice is that the collected seeds must not be allowed to dry out before planting (see the propagation instruction page for more on this topic). Lee reports, in an exchange with the Arboretum de Villardebelle (which specializes in world conifers) "I rechecked my remaining floaters when first cleaned and now 15 out of 17 non-distributed seeds are sinkers. They had been stored in moist sphagnum moss in a refrigerator while in the process of being distributed. Dr. Ed Croom mentioned good germination of floaters from Florida sources but I've sent out sorted and labeled 'floaters/sinkers' to have folks observe any germination differences. I did have one seed fall behind a container and discovered it two weeks later. It was dry and the seed 'rattled' when shaken. There was an obvious drying of the seed and separation from the woody seed coat. You reinforce the need to never let seeds dry after collection and the benefit of soaking seeds prior to storage in moist media."

  • February 1, 2010 / by Arboretum de Villardebelle (SW France) / Photos and statistics of 2009 Biltmore Seeds Sent to Arboretum de Villardbelle added to online page

    "Here is the updated page with the seeds you sent me: http://www.pinetum.org/TorreyaGuardians.htm. [Note, scroll to the bottom of the page to get to the 2009 photos.] I added the statistics about the sizes of the seeds. Imo this should be done more often to have as precise data as possible, for instance for comparison with other origins or other species. When I received the seeds, I soaked them in water. All sank. After manipulation for scanning and measurements, one seed was floating. When you sent me the floating seeds were they all still floating? Usually floating seeds mean that they began to dry. Thereafter if sinking, they could take the water again and they should be ok." [In a follow-up email he added, "The seeds of Torreya californica are much bigger [than Torreya taxifolia]."]

  • January 30, 2010 / by Connie Barlow / The importance of deep-time thinking

    I forwarded the message by Patrick Shirey (January 10 comment below), to Josh Donlan (lead author of the Pleistocene Rewilding papers) and to several journalists who have been following the assisted migration issue. In my email I made this plea:

    What I feel is most lacking in conversations about assisted migration outside of our Torreya Guardians group and outside of the Pleistocene Rewilding conversation is a willingness to look at what is native habitat from a deep-time perspective. It's like almost all wildlife biologists are still stuck in the (Starker) Leopold Report conclusions of the 1970s, when Leopold was commissioned by the National Park Service (as I recall) to come up with a benchmark time (just prior to Columbus) that parklands would be managed for. Time for a new perspective! I have spent a lot of time with Paul S. Martin, Pleistocene ecologist and one of the coauthors of the Pleistocene Rewilding papers, and he really taught me to see thru deep-time eyes Ñ and how thoroughly mixed up species cohabitations were at the height of the glaciation and then in the huge variations in species recovery of northern ranges Ñ basically the community model (which his own work 5 decades ago had helped establish!) got thrown out and the opportunistic species frame came in (thanks in large part to the work of palynologist Hazel Delcourt).
       Overall, once one steps into the deep-time perspective, it becomes utterly rational to think of northward introductions not as moving outside of native range, but as really keeping pace with native range as extant species (by definition) have always had to do! Torreya was moved by us not into new habitat, but returned to its deep-time habitat (the southern Appalachians) which most likely was central (or even southerly) to its range for tens of millions of years prior to the onset of the Pleistocene.

  • January 10, 2010 / by Patrick Shirey / Symposium: Species Introductions and Reintroductions 2010

    I thought you might want to know about a species introductions and reintroductions symposium at Mississippi State University in April. It seemed like something that might interest the Torreya Guardians. I am considering submitting an abstract.

  • January 14, 2010 / by Lee Barnes / All but 1 of the remaining Torreya seedlings still surviving in Waynesville plantings

    I went by Sara Evan's property on Eagles Nest to check the Torreya. All but two looked great. The snow did not knock over the plants quite as much as at the Bryan Nature Garden. I'm guessing the snow was not as "wet" at the higher elevation. My friends at Grass Roots nursery near Junaluska measured lows of 0 degrees F., but I don't think it was quite as cold at Lake Junaluska. I measured 9 degrees F. as a low on the porch at my house in Waynesville. By the way, Lake Junaluska is mostly frozen over; I think I've only seen that 2-3 times in the last 30 years.
         The dead plant was the runt of the plantings and has looked pretty weak since the plantings. (Click here for more detail and photos of the tree, alive and dead.) It might resprout from the base in the spring, but I doubt it. I'll look closer at it next time I'm up there, maybe next week. The other weak plant was the second smallest transplant; it does have green needles at the base and I do expect it to leaf-out in the spring. Both of the plants were in the sunnier location.
         All in all, I think we had excellent survival rates with no care after first month of hand-watering during a drought. The rest of the plants look firmly established and I expect all to grow and prosper. This proves to me that Torreya can be successfully rewilded as transplants. Time will tell if they will successfully reseed themselves at our two plantings. (Torreya seeds have been spread hundreds of feet from the mother trees by squirrels at Biltmore Estate for many years.)
         I am saving some of the seeds from the Biltmore Estate to grow seedlings for a couple of years prior to transplanting at these two sites to try to introduce some genetic diversity (seeds from Biltmore and Woodlanders Nursery are from different sources, as well as the plant "Celia" that Connie got from Atlanta Botanical Gardens and carried across the country and back.) Same with seeds to Jack Johnson to add to his established plantings in North Georgia. We received 301 seeds from Biltmore Estate just before Christmas and I'm in the process to sending them out to Botanical Gardens and individuals at locations farther north. I want to get them to folks who can "ground stratify" them, exposing them to natural alternating day/night temperatures that greatly improve their germination based on Atlanta Botanical Gardens experience.

  • January 11, 2010 / by Lee Barnes / Distribution of 301 T. taxifolia seeds from Biltmore Gardens

    I just cleaned 301 seeds that are ready for distribution. There were 115 "floaters" and 186 "sinkers." I've downloaded Connie's list of Torreya Volunteers and also will look at my list of geographically important volunteers and Botanical Gardens that were sent poor quality seeds in the past (we really need folks with facilities to germinate and raise seedlings for several years prior to transplanting into the wild.) I'm wanting to get seeds out so that folks can stratify in situ, fluxuating day/night ground temperatures (per Determann's recommendations). I'm a little concerned about the large number of "floaters" (seeds that float in water), but personal communications with Dr. Ed Croom indicates his contacts with Maclay Gardens (FL) who had good germination with floaters.
        I'm wanting to keep some seeds for planting with our Waynesville sites: (I'm set-up to ground stratify seeds and grow to transplant size) so that we can increase genetic diversity here. I also want to send a good number of seeds to Jack Johnston who has had good germination procedures. I'm thinking 25-50 seeds for Waynesville and same for Jack.

  • December 20, 2009 / by Connie Barlow / Barlow interview of A. J. Bullard on the history of the Clinton NC Torreyas and their offspring

    In December 2009 Connie interviewed A. J. Bullard on his experience collecting 5,000 seeds in 1995 from 2 Torreya taxifolia in Clinton NC, believed to have been planted around 1850. In 1998 a hurricane killed one of the two, and in 1997 A. J. rescued 75 seedlings that squirrels had planted in nearby hedges and flower beds and a vacant lot that was scheduled to be mowed. Contact Connie Barlow (Connie at TheGreatStory dot org) if you wish to learn where those 75 seedlings may now be found, and A. J.'s experience with squirrel-Torreya symbiosis and his observation of how individual Torreya trees will produce both male and female reproductive structures, thus ensuring fertile seed production even in isolated lone trees (including the Norlina NC champion Torreya and the lone Clinton survivor or reproductive age.

  • December 20, 2009 / by Connie Barlow / Biltmore Gardens donated 2009 T. taxifolia seed harvest to Torreya Guardians

    This week Lee Barnes picked up some 300 seeds of Torreya taxifolia from Forest Historian Bill Alexander at Biltmore Gardens (Asheville NC), which has a grove of such trees that was planted more than 80 years ago. Distribution will happen soon to individuals that have the land, the commitment, the expertise, and the correct geography/climate to participate in assisted migration for this highly endangered conifer tree. Contact Connie Barlow (Connie at TheGreatStory dot org) if you wish to participate.

  • December 17, 2009 / by Connie Barlow / Important paper on the history, science, legality, and regulatory options for assisted migration

    Finally, a scholarly paper has been published that explores the gamut of considerations from an historic and objective standpoint. Titled "Assisted Migration Under the U.S. Endangered Species Act," it is so much more than that. It is the foundational paper for serious students or activists on this topic to begin their education. To find it, go to our annotated list of links on assisted migration on this website and scroll down to the note in red that calls attention to this crucial scholarly work:

  • November 28, 2009 / by Connie Barlow / Advice on stimulating reproductive activity in conifers

    Connie Barlow received this email advice from Claire Williams: "I work on conifer reproductive biology and have watched your group's effort to save this Torreya with great interest. The failure to reproduce is disturbing. But I have a question: have you tried any methods for stimulating female and male strobili using giberellins and other "stimulation" methods that work well with other conifers? If this holds interest, then Prof. Michael Greenwood at the University of Maine would be a good contact. He is the world's expert on when and how to stimulate strobili on any number of conifers."

  • November 18, 2009 / by Connie Barlow / More T. taxifolia in North Carolina reported
    A 2009 issue of the magazine Wildlife in North Carolina contained an editorial correction by Greg Jenkins titled "More N.C. Torreyas." It reads: "Mount Olive botanist A. J. Bullard called to inform us that some information was missing from our story "Rewilding a Native" by Sidney Cruze in the Aug 2009 issue. When we asked what was missing, Bullard blew our minds by revealing that there is another living Torreya taxifolia tree in North Carolina that is well over a century old. This tree was one of the two that were planted in Clinton in the 1850s, around the same time that it is estimated the state champion tree in Norlina was planted. A storm in the late 1990s knocked down one of the Clinton Torreyas, but the other survives today. Bullard also explained that the researchers had traced the Norlina and Clinton trees to a single source. Pomaria Nurseries, an antebellum outfit near Columbia, SC, sold a tremendous variety of native and exotic fruit trees, ornamental trees, shrubs and flowers during that era. Scientists made the connection because Osage orange trees were planted near both Torreya sites, and Pomaria sold both types of trees. Bullard and his late cousin, Bob Melvin, verified the identity of the Clinton trees in 1995 and collected 5,000 seeds from the trees, which they distributed to botanists across the state for attempted propagation. Seeds were planted at sites from Meredith College in Raleigh to Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. Perhaps the most surprising fact Bullard provided was that, contrary to botany textbooks, Torreya is not dioecious — that is, having male and female reproductive structures on separate plants. Rather, it is monoecious, because both the Norlina and Clinton trees are producing viable seeds with no other Torreya around. Bullard knows this firsthand because he ha two Torreya trees on his own property — both bearing fruit."

  • November 3, 2009 / by Connie Barlow / Torreya californica work in Placerville

    Brian Austin of Placerville CA sent Torreya Guardians this email: "I love your site. I don't really know of anyone around me that is as interested in this tree as I am. I live in Placerville, CA. Our climate is hot and dry during the summer. I have found Torreya only in deep, shady ravines. The trees are small, and seeds are apparently rare. I collected 6 seeds a couple of years ago (a fraction of what the trees produced that year). Four of them germinated this spring. I now have four seedlings that are perhaps 6" tall. They live in a shady spot where my ferns are happy. Whenever possible I educate others about this special tree. I admire the work that you all are doing. Species like Torreya are gems of the forest. Many of these gems are rare now in Placerville due to misuse of the forests, and sprawling development. Keep up the good work and I will do the same."

    Connie Barlow responded: "It is great to hear that you are caring for California Torreya in your local area. You might go to the Plant Guardians website, start a Torreya californica group, and see who shows up. I sponsored having the site created last year, but had to make is pretty much self-serve, as TorreyaGuardians.org takes up as much of my volunteer time as I have. Here is the link: http://www.plantguardians.org

  • August 24, 2009 / by Connie Barlow / New companion website: www.PlantGuardians.org

    I have instigated a companion website: PlantGuardians.org that, unlike TorreyaGuardians.org, should be largely self-running. Its purpose is to enable networking and rudimentary communications among citizen activists who want to discuss the needs and possible actions in behalf of other imperiled plant species or geographically unique populations.

  • June 10, 2009 / by Lee Barnes / Three of ten rewilded seedlings at Lake Junaluska lost to voles during winter.

    I'm sad to report that we have lost a total of 3 of the ten Torreya seedlings at Lake Junaluska [planted as seedlings July 31, 2008]. The loss appears to be from voles eating the bark. I'll send some photos when I get a chance. We are placing short wire-cages of 1/2 inch hardware cloth/rabbit wire around the remaining plants there. I'll try to get up to the Evans property set of trees in the next few days to report and get some photos. The remaining plants at Lake Junaluska have flushed out with 3-4 inches of new growth. The plants in the sunny area are doing the best, or at least seem to have the thicker foliage.

  • April 24, 2009 / by Lee Barnes / Why moving Torreya is the best way to save it.

    Editor's note: Torreya Guardian Lee Barnes recently responded to a journalist's email inquiry this way: To answer your question, "Why moving Torreya is the best way to save it?", I wish that we could reestablish Torreya back into its historical range (Appalachicola watershed drainage, FL-GA) but that may not be possible due to the human influence by introducing Phytophora root rot into the southern US along with the extensive cultivation of cotton along the Gulf States. There appears to currently be little to no natural seed reproduction in that area. Drought cycles may be becoming more extreme with global climate change.
       We proposed a logical solution that plantings within the deep time range shown in fossil pollen records (including WNC and over the entire northern hemisphere) are needed to produce additional seeds and evaluate new areas for establishment. Establishing seed producing populations of Torreya in diverse areas should act as a buffer to total loss due to unpredictable climate change. Many rare and useful plant species now only exist outside of their historical range (Franklinia, Metasequoia, Ginkgo, and many others) due to human concern for the survival of an individual species. We truly need to focus on protecting entire plant and animal communities, but when that is not possible due to habitat loss, we need to focus on short-term propagation and protection just to keep the species alive.

  • April 23, 2009 / by Jack Johnston / Report on T. taxifolia seeds planted fall 2008.

    Torreya taxifolia [planted as seedlings] are expanding buds here [mountains of NE Georgia]; all seedlings planted in the ground survived the winter. I added lime before heavy April rains, and that may have helped them. I have been told that the seeds I have in the ground were picked much too green, so it remains to be seen if any come up from last fall's harvest. I have three screened seed flats and have had a vole in one of them so am concerned. The vole came up from underneath. I'll try to drop a note to let you know when germination occurs if it happens in spring. Last year nothing germinated until summer.

  • March 25, 2009 / by Connie Barlow / Michelle Nijuis' article "Taking Wildness in Hand" (on Torreya taxifolia assisted migration controversy) has been selected for the 2009 edition of Best American Science and Nature Writing.

    The anthology will be published next fall by Houghton-Mifflin. The guest editor, New Yorker environmental writer Elizabeth Kolbert, selected Michelle Nijhuis' story published in the May/June issue of Orion magazine, called "To Take Wildness in Hand," which describes the promise and perils of "assisted migration" of species, with Torreya taxifolia being the species focus. Congratulations Michelle! (The article can be accessed in full online at http://www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/2966/.)

  • January 3, 2009 / by Connie Barlow / Report of T. taxifolia seedlings planted in Highlands August 2008

    I have just posted on this website a new webpage in which Russell Regnery reports on planting 10 Torreya taxifolia seedlings on his property near Highlands, NC in August 2008. Click here.

  • December 5, 2008 / by Connie Barlow / Professional Responses to my query about keeping 2 Torreya species physically separate

    I recently received a query from a plant nursery owner in Oregon who wanted to participate in our program of propagating the eastern species of genus Torreya, the highly endangered Torreya taxifolia. I responded:

    "Thank you for your interest in helping this endangered species. Torreya Guardians has received one other offer of private lands for growing Torreya taxifolia along the Pacific (that was in California) and, while we appreciate the offers to help, we are careful to work with landowners only east of the Mississippi or on a separate continent. The reason is that Torreya californica is the Torreya species on your side of the continent, and we don't want to encourage any mixing of pollen types. Its northernmost outpost in the Coast Range is not far from the Oregon border, so in the decades and centuries ahead, California torreya may be looking up in your direction."

    I then sent off an email query to the professionals who have published or managed on the assisted migration controversy, and asked whether this was an important policy guideline for us Guardians to follow. All three concurred with my response:

    MARK SCHWARTZ: "Connie, You are not being paranoid about pollen mixing. It would be VERY BAD to mix pollen. This is what caused the de-listing of the Dusky Seaside Sparrow: the pure genotype was lost (owing to intentional cross-breeding because of there being 6 males and 0 females). Nonetheless, if a listed species is hybridized out of existence, then the species will be delisted. That is not good. We KNOW that some nurseries are not as careful as they should be. We have no idea what interested collectors do. This is why I think it is very dangerous to advocate volunteer citizen groups to take on the task of translocating species for conservation and why I am opposed to what Torreya Guardians does. I think that, despite good intentions, these efforts can result in more harm than good. I am not so worried about Torreya Guardians, per se. But the promulgation of these efforts to other species can have disastrous effects on biodiversity. Please be very careful about who you suggest what to in this regard. I, for one, do not want free-wheeling interest groups for all 5000 rare taxa in the US." [coauthor of April 2007 paper on assisted migration, journal Conservation Biology and specialist on Torreya taxifolia]

    CHRIS THOMAS: "Dear Connie, Whilst I do not know anything specific about the Torreya species, I think that your initial response is appropriate. One of the key questions in Hoegh-Guldberg et al. 2008 Science paper is "Do benefits of translocation outweigh the biological and socioeconomic costs and constraints?" When translocation would increase the potential for future (given future climate change range shifts) genetic introgression and competition between related species, and translocation would involve movement between biogeographic regions (E and W USA count as separate in this case), the answer will in almost all cases be no. Given that there are other opportunities in the East, the answer to this question should be no with respect to transfer to the western USA." [(coauthor of the July 2008 Forum on assisted colonization, journal Science]

    VIVIAN NEGRON-ORTIZ: "I appreciate the conservation efforts in the recovery of T. taxifolia. However, interspecific hybridization should be avoided between these two species (or other species in the genus); their genetic integrity should be maintained. I don't recommend translocating T. taxifolia to the West; the native range of T. californica should be completely avoided. If T. taxifolia 'migrates' due to climate change it should be toward the East. Also, species introduced into non-native areas may disrupt 'native' species assemblages that are already impacted by environmental change. Preferable, a careful reintroduction scheme should be followed." [Botanist, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Panama City FL]

  • November 20, 2008 / by Connie Barlow / Autumn Progress Report on Waynesville-2 Rewilding of Torreya seedlings
    In mid-November 2008, Lee Barnes and I visited the site where we had planted in July the second group of Torreya taxifolia seedlings. the only ones that looked stressed were the three planted in the driest hottest part of the south-facing mountain slope (3,400 feet). The others looked great. On our Nov 13 visit, the oaks still had their leaves, but by Nov 18, almost all the oak leaves were down. That meant that the Torreyas now had full sun for photosynthesis. Because the forest closed canopy here is entirely deciduous, we envision that the Torreyas will thrive here by photosynthesizing mostly in spring and fall. Meanwhile, during the hottest and driest part of the summer, they will be protected by shade.

    I also just finished adding a separate web page for each individual tree planted (a total of 31 new webpages). All the photos (including grid photos Lee Barnes took of each in August) that pertain to that tree, and all reports of progress or setbacks, will henceforth be posted on those individual pages. Those individual pages are easily accessed from the Corneille Bryan Native Garden main page and the Evans Property main page.

  • November 7, 2008 / by Jack Johnston / Torreya seeds at Smithgall Woods, GA site
    Just a word on the Torreya at Smithgall--held seeds until I picked the final ones Nov. 5. I think they survived because squirrels are scarce this year. A broken branch with a point of attachment was cut away from the parent bush (female) and cuttings from it were stuck. We'll see if they take. The age of the cuttings is such that if they root the plants should flower in a few years.

  • October 23, 2008 / by Brian Keel / Posting of chapters from my "Assisted Migration" PhD thesis
    I have noticed the term assisted colonization showing up in several sources. I feel that assisted colonization and assisted migration are two similar but separate concepts. The attached document is part of chapter one of my dissertation that may help clarify the difference. [Editor's Note: Click for "Defining Migration" chapter or "Assisted Migration" chapter].

  • October 22, 2008 / by Connie Barlow / Assisted Migration Public Talks I've Given this Month in Wisconsin
    In the past 4 years I have on several occasions presented a digital slide program on the need for assisted migration of Torreya taxifolia. This month marks the first opportunities I have had to present illustrated talks on our actual assisted migration action this past July. The first one was at the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center, north of Milwaukee WI. About 25 staff from 2 nature centers attended, mostly staff who teach visiting school classes. The second opportunity happened earlier this week, when I presented this program to 30 college students at Edgewood College in Madision WI, at a required "Intro to Natural Science" course.

  • September 3, 2008 / by Connie Barlow / Assisted Migration and Torreya Guardians reported in online edition of Nature journal

    "Moving on Assisted Migration" news report by Emma Marris, Nature, online 28 August 2008. One of the top journals in science reports on the special session on assisted migration at the Ecological Society of America meeting in August 2008. Torreya Guardians is presented as taking the action lead in pressing for a rethinking of how biodiversity is best protected.

  • September 2, 2008 / by Connie Barlow / Review of Hazel Delcourt's Forests in Peril posted on Amazon.com

    My 5-star book review begins, "Forests in Peril is the book that launched our citizen naturalists group on the internet: Torreya Guardians. In reading Hazel's book (2002), I was struck by how important the "pocket reserves" were to the preservation of rich forest species during the peak of the last glacial episode some 18,000 years ago (as well as all the previous glacial episodes). One of those pocket reserves runs along the edge of the Apalachicola River in the Florida Panhandle. And it is here that the most endangered conifer tree in the world, Torreya taxifolia, is gravely imperiled."
        I strongly encourage those involved in the assisted migration controversy to read this book, in order to gain an essential deep-time perspective.

  • August 3, 2008 / by Connie Barlow / 31 Seedlings of T. taxifolia REWILDED IN NORTH CAROLINA!
    Wow! On July 30, Torreya Guardians undertook the first truly "assisted migration" of the highly endangered conifer, Torreya taxifolia. We planted 31 potted seedlings on two forested sites near Waynesville, North Carolina. This "rewilding" effort was documented by a writer and a photographer commmissioned by Audubon magazine. The article will probably appear in the March 2009 issue. Meanwhile, sample our journey via:

  • PHOTO-ESSAY OF THE REWILDING ACTION.

  • PHOTO-DOCUMENTATION of the first 10 PLANTINGS.

  • PHOTO-DOCUMENTATION of the final 21 PLANTINGS.

    • Lots was happening leading up to that historic event. You can gain a sense of the preparation by viewing the CHRONOLOGY of events leading up to the rewilding action.

  • July 19, 2008 / by Connie Barlow / Assisted Migration/Colonization advocated in Science journal

    POLICY FORUM: ECOLOGY: "Assisted Colonization and Rapid Climate Change" by O. Hoegh-Guldberg, L. Hughes, S. McIntyre, D. B. Lindenmayer, C. Parmesan, H. P. Possingham, and C. D. Thomas, in Science 18 July 2008: 345-346. Because this influential paper uses the term assisted colonization, rather than assisted migration Connie Barlow has added a webpage to seek comments on pros and cons of the two competing terms: "Assisted Migration or Assisted Colonization: What's in a Name?"

  • June 12, 2008 / by Connie Barlow / Rewilding of 31 T. taxifolia to NC July 30 2008!
    Torreya Guardians will be planting 31 potted seedlings on two privately owned forested habitats near Waynesville North Carolina. July 30 is the date set so that Torreya Guardians Connie Barlow, Lee Barnes, and Jack Johnston, as well as a reporter and photographer sent by Audubon Magazine, will all be able to converge at the sites. For more information, contact: Connie Barlow.

  • June 10, 2008 / by Connie Barlow / Torreya Guardians featured in May/June 2008 issue of Orion Magazine
    Orion Magazine now has available online a long article that poignantly highlights the controversy over assisted migration of plants in a time of climate change, and Torreya Guardians are the featured group in this effort. Click here for "Taking Wildness in Hand: Rescuing Species", by Michelle Nijhuis. (You can also post a comment there online.)
  • 03/05/08 / by Lee Barnes and Connie Barlow / Distribution of Fall 2007 seeds donated by Biltmore Gardens

    EMAIL SENT TO ALL FRIENDS OF TORREYA GUARDIANS
    Subject: 2008 Torreya Guardians Seed Distribution

    Dear Torreya Guardians,
        We are pleased to again offer packets of Torreya taxifolia (Florida Stinking Cedar) seed from the 2007 seed harvest at Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC. We thank Bill Alexander and his staff for collecting and sharing seeds for this grassroots distribution project. We are releasing 20 packets, each with 5 male and 5 female seeds to allow for better pollination. We are first offering seeds to the 2006 Distribution volunteers since most of them experienced low germination rates from refrigerator stored seeds. Seeds are currently being stored under natural temperatures but should be requested as soon as possible due to my recovery from hip surgery in mid-March.
        Thanks to Connie Barlow for her detailed notes taken during her site visit in December 2007 to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. Ron Determann's generous sharing of their highly successful germination procedures is available from our website http://www.torreyaguardians.org/propagate.html. Connie also has provided additional photographs and additional information on rooting cuttings, as well as, more info on site selection, shading and need for periodic liming. I will provide copies of this information with each mailing.
        Key to successful germination is cold stratification to duplicate nature's cycles in ground beds that get the full range of daily temperature cycles (freeze/thaw) vs. constant 40-45 degree F. temperature storage in a refrigerator. The seeds to be distributed have only been partially stratified so you will need to plant them in protected beds where they receive natural temperatures for a month or two. Simple wire screening is recommended to protect from squirrels.
        Please email your requests to me and provide complete shipping information. Connie and I are donating all mailing and packing costs and ask that you occasionally report germination status, and plant growth, fruiting, and seed production. Volunteers need to be committed for 10-15 years before good seed production is expected and be willing to further distribute seeds.
        Thank you for your interest in preserving our national botanical treasure Torreya.
        Happy Trails, Lee

    PS from Connie:
        1. This summer, Orion Magazine will be publishing a feature article on Torreya Guardians work in a time of climate change.
        2. Watch the rewilding page too, especially the July 2007 post I made there about Atlanta Botanical Gardens looking for INSTITUTIONS to send seeds and seedlings to. They've got a huge inventory. Unlike Torreya Guardians, they cannot send seeds to individuals, but nature centers and botanical gardens should contact Ron Determann at Atlanta Botanical Garden directly to participate.

  • 01/17/08 / by Sylvain Meier / Swiss Arboretum experience with genus Torreya
    I'm Sylvain Meier, a freelance forest engineer from Switzerland involved mostly as a volunteer in the development of the dendrological collections of the Swiss National Arboretum. www.arboretum.ch I'm also in charge of rebuilding a Forest Model of the Pacific Northwest (2.5 ha). It includes a few California Nutmegs! We have a collection of different Torreya species including Torreya taxifolia. Unfortunately those trees come mainly from nurseries and don't really have the value such a collection should have. Checking the plants two years ago I noticed plenty of nuts under the supposed Torreya taxifolia. I realized that it is certainly not a Torreya taxifolia as nuts are much more like those of Torreya nucifera from Japan and Korea. Seeds are long and in no case a little bit rounded.
        To improve the value of our collection and test the right species under our relatively mild climate we would very much appreciate a few seeds or cuttings. Is it possible? California nutmeg is growing very well in Switzerland (it exist in parks in the lowland). In Geneva they regularly produce sound seeds. Japanese nutmeg is more seldom but apparently quite hardy too. I have been to Japan last spring and have seen very often the Torreya nucifera var radicans that is growing in snowy areas of the west side of Honshu. I'm not really sure Torreya taxifolia is actually growing in Switzerland...
    Thanks again for your promising work.
    Sylvain Meier
    c/o Arboretum National du Vallon de l'Aubonne
    Switzerland
  • 12/18/07 / by Connie Barlow / Advice on Propagating T. taxifolia from seeds or cuttings

    In early December 2007, I visited Ron Determann and David Ruland at the Atlanta Botanical Garden and toured their Torreya taxifolia propagation facilities. Most impressive! I have added to this website a catalog of advice for propagating this endangered tree from seeds and from branch cuttings, and have embellished the page with lots of photographs.

  • 11/1/07 / by Connie Barlow / Papers Debating Assisted Migration

    I have posted a new page and I keep updating it to keep track of the "assisted migration" debate that heated up January 2007, with the lead story of the January issue of Conservation magazine. It was a prelude to the April 2007 publication in Conservation Biology of "A Framework for Debate of Assisted Migration in an Era of Climate Change" by Jason S. McLachlan, Jessica J. Hellman, and Mark W. Schwartz, Conservation Biology, April 2007, Vol 21: 297-302. Torreya Guardians was prominently featured in both pieces. To keep up on this debate, visit the assisted migration compendium of papers page on this website.

  • 7/30/07 / dialogue bt anon and Lee Barnes / Legend of the Biggest T. taxifolia Tree in Norlina NC

    Anon asks: The Norlina site is in Granville County, near the Virginia line. I spent a whole day there, and scoured the town in search of a Torreya taxifolia. I even contacted the Agricultural Extension agent, and he knows of no such tree in or around Norlina. I would like to think the legend is true, but I tend to think that if there were once a T. taxifolia, it has either been forgotten or removed by newer homeowners.

       Lee Barnes answers: I've been to the Norlina Torreyas in mid-1980s. [Photo to left was taken by Lee of the Norlina tree at that time.] There was a very large torreya (notably a Champion so must be other records on girth/height/etc.) and many smaller trees that appeared to have been transplanted/moved around the landscape. Bill Alexander at Biltmore Gardens knows of the tree; his wife was a roommate with a woman who was "related" to the tree, possibly a daughter of the landowner. He can give you more info. As I remember, the tree was given to a NC Senator, but I cannot remember details of over twenty years ago! I remember the tree had numerous basal sprouts(many dozens in a clump) that would make good cutting material. I recommend dormant cuttings after a few hard frosts in the fall. Good luck on the hunt for cuttings... Happy Trails, Lee

  • 7/27/07 / by Connie Barlow / Seeds and seedlings from Atlanta Botanical Garden are available to institutions!

    Click to visit a long comment I posted in July 2007 on our Status of Rewilding webpage. It includes information on what the Atlanta Botanical Garden is currently doing in support of the official Conservation Recovery Plan for Torreya taxifolia as a highly endangered species. It also includes tips on how to have best success in germinating the seed.

  • 7/19/07 / by Connie Barlow / journalist interest in Torreya taxifolia as poster plant for global warming and assisted migration

    Over the past week or so, I have received queries from two print journalists and one public radio journalist who wanted to converse about possibilities about their doing major stories on how global warming is already endangering a plant species and how assisted migration is being pursued as a result. This all got started because of a journal article by Mark Schwartz et al. on the topic of assisted migration, published in the spring issue of Conservation Biology, which prompted a preceding popular article on the subject by Douglas Fox in the sibling magazine, Conservation (cover story of January 2007 issue). Douglas chose Torreya as the lead character in that story.
        The New York Times and other news agencies rapidly picked up the story, so I posted and periodically update a new page on this website, assisted migration. If you google "assisted migration" the proposed standards page on this website consistently comes up at or near the top, so journalists have found their way to me.
        If and when any of this second round of stories come to fruition, I will post them on that webpage and also note the event on this comments page. Meanwhile, know that I am recommending for the journalists to directly contact the on-the-ground players in this, both among us Torreya Guardians, and those in the institutional settings.
        Together for Torreya, Connie

  • 7/9/07 / dialogue bt Lee Barnes and Jack Johnston / rooting T. taxifolia cuttings

    Q: Hi Lee,
        I'm asking for feedback. Some Torreya cuttings stuck last Oct. are still green and may be struggling to root. I keep them under shade cloth to reduce the stress. If they root, would you expect them to grow any this year? I basically stuck the cuttings in pots, no mist, no cover, just shade. Did use rooting hormone. Jack

    A: Jack,
        I've been most successful rooting cuttings in the fall after hard frosts have put the buds into dormancy. Cuttings taken at other times tend to flush new growth prior to rooting. So do you have any roots? or callus/excessive callus at the bottom end of the cuttings? I would have expected rooting within a few months. What strength rooting hormone did you use? Also, evergreen cuttings often benefit from scoring the bottom sides of the cutting. I generally used a sharp knife to lightly scape bark off the cutting along two sides of the bottom inch of the cutting. Larger diameter cuttings 1/8 to 1/4 inch diameter worked better than smaller diameter cuttings. The root system of cuttings tend to be thick, unbranched and brittle. I hope this helps. It's been about 20 years since I've done Torreya cuttings. I never had trouble rooting but I had access to a mist system. It is important to root cuttings with upright growth. Lateral branches will root but plageotrophic growth and only grow as a groundcover. Happy Trails, Lee

    NOTE by Connie Barlow:
        Lee's point about taking cutting stock from upright growth reminds me of how much I have benefited from this knowledge when viewing ginkgo trees along streets and sidewalks. Because the fruit of the female trees has such a repugnant smell when fallen, our society puts a premium on ensuring that only male trees show up in public places, and they do that by rooting cuttings from demonstrably male trees. But if lateral cuttings are used, the "tree" still believes it is a branch and thus grows strangely. I have read that this problem can be solved by letting the "tree" grow enough to establish a good root and then cutting it back, so that the suppressed buds at the base sprout a whole new stem, and this time the stem knows it is supposed to make a whole tree.

  • 6/14/07 / by Jeff Morris / another germination from 2005 T. taxifolia seeds

    "Last Sunday, I noticed my first seedling sprout from one of the seeds. I am going on vacation, after which I will take photos, and hopefully have a couple more to photograph."

  • 6/12/07 / by Jack Johnston / T. taxifolia seedlings available at S. Carolina nursery

    "Woodlander's Nursery at Aiken SC has Torreya taxifolia for sale. The nursery is not willing to ship the plants across the state line since they are endangered, nor can one casually visit the nursery and buy them. An order must be placed in advance and a pickup appointment made. Availability can be determined by calling the nursery. The price is less than $20 per plant. The plants are a few years old. The several I have planted are growing but did shed some leaves in the drought.
        Here are web links, first to the Woodlands home page and then the Torreya page:
         http://www.woodlanders.net/index.cfm/fuseaction/plants.main/index.htm
         http://www.woodlanders.net/index.cfm?fuseaction=plants.plantDetail&plant_id=949

  • 3/12/07 / by Kara Ferris of Decatur GA / "I have three T.taxifolia on my property"

    "I have three T. taxifolia on my property: two large trees and one medium tree with a clump of small trees and sprouts (maybe seedlings?) around it. They produce a lot of cones, but I haven't seen mature ones. I haven't really looked that hard, though. Maybe there are treasures hidden in the ground around them, which hasn't been disturbed in years.
       It's quite possible that these trees are from the original population. My late grandfather-in-law, Harry Dewar, was an electrical engineer who often worked for the TVA on dam projects. He collected specimens from all over the South and planted them on this property, formerly a pasture, now a forest. This house was completed in 1952, around the same time as the Appalachicola dam. It would make sense that he would collect specimens from the area to be flooded, assuming he was there, but I have no proof of this.
       In any case, I would like someone to come look at the trees and tell me how I can help to preserve them. I want to make some changes to that area of the property — take out the non-natives and get rid of some pines and magnolias — but I'm afraid to alter the conditions lest it affect the existing trees. I would love to plant more T. taxifolia in place of the common trees, if I can get them. I'm also interested in planting some Franklinia.
       Please email or call me and let me know how I can help with this or any other conservation projects. You can forward this email to any other interested parties."
       Thank you,
       Kara C. Ferris, Decatur, GA

    NOTE/CORRECTION 6/15/07, Ron Determan of the Atlanta Botanical Garden submitted this comment: "The trees on the Ferris property in Decatur are the usual Cunninghamia lanceolata and NOT T.taxifolia. I don't know how many of those I have checked out over the years and found them to be that."

  • 3/13/07 / by Leigh Brooks / box turtles are more likely dispersers
    "Hi Connie,
    Intriguing hypothesis about the gopher tortoises, but I much prefer your earlier idea that there was some other seed disperser that has gone extinct. From my experience here in Florida, the gopher tortoise and T. taxifolia just don't share the same habitat. The box turtle is the one inhabiting T. taxifolia grounds, rich and shady hardwood forests. The gopher prefers high, dry, sandy areas where they can easily dig long burrows.
        I checked The Fossil Vertebrates of Florida, edited by Richard Hulbert Jr. It says box turtles (Terrapene carolina) are common in Pleistocene beds; they are herbivorous and primarily terrestrial; they were more widespread in the past, though never common; that gigantism is typical in Pleistocene coastal populations but the subspecies is extinct. Among land tortoises, besides gophers, there were larger tortoises in the genus Hesperotestudo. Subgenus Hesperotestudo reached 2 feet, subgenus Caudochelys grew to over a meter. Both subgenera lived through the late Pleistocene. Evidence suggests early people in FL found giant tortoises and hunted them.
        Now get this: "Giant tortoises are important paleoecologic indicators of relatively mild winter temperatures, as they cannot withstand prolonged periods of freezing. Their presence in Florida and elsewhere throughout the southern Unites States during the Pleistocene Epoch is seen as evidence that winter temperatures were actually on average milder during the so-called Ice Age than at present." We've seen how comfortable Torreya is in a colder climate, so maybe tortoises were not the main disperser for Torreya. Any other suspects?
        In any case, if someone is going to test this, it seems it should be done on box turtle as well as gopher tortoise. Also, is there a reason for not using T. taxifolia itself if seeds are available for assisted migration?"

  • 3/12/07 / by Connie Barlow, TorreyaGuardians main contact / don't give up hope on germinating more T. taxifolia seeds

    "Euan - Thank you for the info on the germination of 1 of 10 seeds of T. taxifolia. Don't give up hope on the other nine! It is possible that T. taxifolia co-evolved with tortoises as dispersal agents, so the seed coat might be designed tough enough to get through an animal's digestive tract intact. Absent that natural acidic treatment, it might take longer and variably among the seeds. I wrote a book, The Ghosts of Evolution: Nonsensical Fruit, Missing Partners, and Other Ecological Anachronisms, (Basic Books, 2001) in which I discovered, for example, that absent passage through a gut or physical scarification with a knife, the seeds of American honelocust (Gleditsia triacanthos) can take 3 years or more to germinate, and American Kentucky coffee tree (Gymnocladus dioica) can take 7 years. I found that when I scarred them with a knife in my kitchen, all viable seeds germinated in 3 days. Here are three on-line articles that I published about that book:

    article in Natural History
    article in Wild Earth
    article in Arnoldia

    I am trying to locate someone or an institution in Florida interested in testing Torreya californica whole "fruits" on the large gopher tortoises in Florida, as in my 2001 book I surmised that the pulpy sarcotesta covering the seed might be an attractive food for the tortoise (which is known to eat the pulpy covered cycad seeds here). The experiment would not only test whether gopher tortoises find the fruit attractive but also whether passage through its gut affects germination success and timing. My hypothesis is that local extirpation of the gopher tortoise (and extinction of larger Pleistocene species of tortoise) by paleoIndians living in the tiny pocket refuge as the Ice Age waned may have prevented dispersal of Torreya taxifolia northward to its interglacial habitat in the southern Appalachian Mountains."

  • 3/11/07 / by Euan Roxburgh, U.K. / germination of spring 2006 planting of T. taxifolia seeds

    "Dear Torreya Guardians: I've germinated one Torreya taxifolia seed. It germinated in December 2006 outside in a pot. The other 9 seeds, sorry to say, did not germinate. The seedling is now 2 inches high. I have one other clone here of Torreya taxifolia." [Editor's note: This volunteer grower received a packet of 10 Torreya taxifolia seeds from the Fall 2005 harvest at the Biltmore Gardens of North Carolina].

  • 3/6/07 / by Didier Maerki, Arboretum de Villardebelle in southern France / spring 2006 planting of T. taxifolia seeds have germinated!

    "Dear Torreya Guardians: This is to inform you that the 2 first seeds germinated and are sprouting. Both labeled as [possible] male, date of sowing 16 May 2006. Best Wishes, Didier"

  • 1/30/07 / by Didier Maerki, Arboretum de Villardebelle in southern France / new species of T. taxifolia described in China

    "Dear Torreya Guardians: A new species of Torreya has been described from Sichuan in China:

    Torreya parvifolia Yi, L. Yang et Long, a new species of the Taxaceae from Sichuan, China, is described and illustracted. The new species is closely related to Torreya yunnanensis Cheng et L. K. Fu, from which it differs apparently by the shorter and smaller stem, 4 to 5m high, 10 to 15cm diameter; smaller leaves, (1.2)1.5~2cm long, 2.2~3mm broad, acute on the apex with short acumen, rotund or rotundly cuneate at the base, upper surface only below with inconspicuous 2-canaliculates, under surface with 2 stomatic bands broader grey white, nearly as width as mitrib and green side; seeds with arillate obovoid or rare nearly globose, smaller, 1.5~2cm diameter. SOURCE: click here

  • "A Radical Step to Preserve Species: Assisted Migration" by Carl Zimmer, New York Times (Science Times), 23 January 2007 (lead story).
    Content: References a forthcoming paper to be published in the journal Conservation Biology that encourages debate on the topic, by Mark Schwartz, Jason McLachlan, and Jessica Hellman

  • "When Worlds Collide" by Douglas Fox, Conservation Magazine, Jan-March 2007 (cover story).
    This is an article exploring the debate about assisted migration of plants in an era of global warming. The work of Torreya Guardians is mentioned.

  • 11/15/06 / by Karl Studenroth, NW Florida Environmental Conservancy / Collaboration between our groups

    "Hello! I came across your website recently about the FL Torreya tree and I was very impressed! It's great to see your site and all the detailed information on it! I'm Karl Studenroth, a field ecologist-herpetologist. I did extensive research at Torreya State Park from 1994 to 1999. I did amphibian and reptiles surveys, rare & endangered species surveys, ecosystem classification and mapping, among many other things. I also specifically surveyed and mapped Torreya trees in the park. I have a special love for the Torreya tree and of course Torreya S.P. and that area. Two years ago I founded the Northwest Florida Environmental Conservancy. I just wanted to let you know that I put some brief info about your Torreya Guardians website, and a link to your site on one of our web pages (page 12 - Steepheads). I hope we can perhaps work together and support each others groups in the future. Keep up the great work!" www.nwflec.com

  • 10/20/06 / by Didier Maerki, Arboretum de Villardbelle (southern France) / Expecting 18 months for 2005 harvest of T. taxifolia seeds to germinate
    [Note: The Arboretum de Villardbelle specializes in world conifers and it was the recipient of a package of 10 T. taxifolia seeds from the 2005 harvest at the Biltmore Gardens.]

    "I have a good experience with Torreya californica seeds. Fertile seeds usually take 18 months to germinate — that is during the second Spring after collection, provided they are kept moist all the time. Very seldom would a few seeds germinate at the end of the first Summer. They will even germinate if kept in the refrigerator below 5*C.
       About our Torreya taxifolia seeds, none of mine germinated so far, but I am not worried. I will send a message (and a photo) as soon as the first will germinate/sprout. They are in 10 tubes and during the Winter I will keep them outside, but in a frost free place."

  • 10/16/06 / by Jack Johnston, Highlands NC / Place to purchase T. taxifolia seedlings in Aiken, SC
    "I visited Woodlanders Nursery (in Aiken, SC) today and purchased 3 T. taxifolia for $16.50 each. Since these plants are endangered, they do not ship, but anyone can drive to the nursery after first placing an order by computer. They do not allow any walk-in sales. The plants are approximately 18 inches tall and look great. The inventory at the nursery is 60+ plants at this time. They are seedling grown. I am not aware of where the seed source. I do know that there are a lot of unusual trees planted around Aiken, and it is possible that they are growing there.
        Note: It seems that the seeds produced this year by the T. taxifolia growing at a DNR preservation site about 40 miles from here were harversted by squirrels around October 7."

  • 9/10/06 / by Peter White (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill) / Offer to ID Highlands Torreya at UNC
    "We also have lots of Torreya material at the Univ. of NC (NCU is the herbarium acronym). The key that I sent to Connie included both North American species.
       Wrapping material in damp newspaper, then that in a plastic bag, with the material sent by reasonably rapid mail, would insure the material was fresh when received.
       Our Herbarium is curated by Alan Weakley who is writing a flora for NC, SC, VA, and GA. Since folks from Highlands have often sent herbarium material to our herbarium, we may even have specimens on hand of the same trees."

  • 9/10/06 / by Leigh Brooks / Chinese botanical imports possible cause of T. taxifolia decline?
    "I heard a theory new to me this week as to why the torreya started dying off. Some unknown organization was promoting the Chinese holly (not sure if it was a holly or a tree that looks similar to torreya called China fir) and giving away trees in the area for planting. This was supposedly about the time the torreyas got blighted, and some of the locals are convinced it was the cause."

  • 9/08/06 / by Dean Gallagher (Imperiled Species Manager, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission) / T. tax in Tallahassee still surviving.
    "I checked on the Torreyas at the Tallahassee Museum. They all look pretty sad with only low spreading branches. Still, they are surviving and that counts for something."

  • 9/06/06 / by Peter White (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill) / Key for distinguishing Torreya species.
    "Here is the key in Flora North America. It includes mostly vegetative characters, and since the cones you saw may have been immature, did you try keying the needles?
  • Two-year-old branches reddish brown; leaves 3-8 cm, flattened on adaxial side, with 2 deeply impressed, glaucous bands of stomates abaxially, emitting pungent odor when crushed; aril light green streaked with purple; California. 1 Torreya californica http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=233501306.

  • Two-year-old branches yellowish green, yellowish brown, or gray; leaves 1.5-3.8 cm, rounded on adaxial side, with 2 scarcely impressed, grayish bands of stomates abaxially, emitting fetid odor when crushed; aril dark green streaked with purple; Florida, Georgia. 2 Torreya taxifolia http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=220013607."

  • 9/06/06 / by Robbin Moran (New York Botanical Garden) / Torreya nucifera at NYBG.
    "I uploaded some photos of Torreya nucifera at www.plantsystematics.org (type Torreya in the Taxon search field, and the images will appear). You probably have better images, but you a most welcome to use these if not. I remember when we looked for this species in the Garden's conifer collection, which at the time was being renovated. That collection is now beautiful--one of the most pleasant places in the Garden [New York Botanical Garden]."

  • 8/31/06 / by Jack Johnston / Thoughts on ID for the Highlands NC Torreya group.
    "When comparing two groups of plants at different sites, it is entirely possible as you know, for variability due to differences in genetic material. When you say that the Highlands and Biltmore populations are different, and are basing it on fruit shape alone, I do not think that is enough. For example, I collect Stewartia seeds and find all kinds of differences from one plant to another in capsule shape, leaf shape, and habit of the plants. If you are convinced that the two populations are different species, it should be based on several characteristics.
        I have just returned from Oregon and was in a yard where an atypical Douglas fir was misidentified by a long time resident based on the bark and limb patterns. Had he looked at the cones, it would have been easy to correctly identify.
        Brown leaves, twigs: Something similar can happen with Canadian hemlocks, and it is not the wooly adelgid problem.
        Seed availability: assuming competition from squirrels, less than 100% harvest, and seeds that are non-viable, it remains to be seen what can be done this year. I hope your man on the site is aggressive in collecting. For example, I collected Magnolia fraseri before going to Oregon (early date for harvest) and when I returned, the seeds were gone from the wild sites. In this case, a 12 day delay in harvest would have meant a missed crop.
        Cuttings: for a backyard hobbist to try to grow T. taxifolia from cuttings would mean a probable loss of the cuttings. Have you considered asking the folks at Biltmore to grow cuttings for this effort and making them available? If they are willing, this should take little greenhouse space, and rooted cuttings can be available in 12 months.
        Site requirements: checking with the folks already growing Torreya in Georgia as to the best site requirements will save making a lot of mistakes. For example, with magnolias it can generally be said that full sun is best, but some in the group like shade. I do not think that one can compare the California material to the Florida as to site requirements.
        Future seed set at Biltmore: assuming that Biltmore will continue to provide seeds, an annual visit to the trees and a comparison to your mapping should be done. This will indicate which trees are producing fruit, if a tree does not produce, if new ones start setting seeds, and if there are deaths." "

  • 8/30/06 / by Rob Nicholson (Smith College Botanical Garden)/ T. taxifolia efforts at Smith Botanical Garden (MA)
    "We no longer have any Torreya, as I shipped them all south where they can be put in the ground. We propagated about 4 or 5 thousand of the cuttings so I felt we had done about as much as we could. If a tenth of those survive to seeding size, I'll be happy."

  • 7/11/06 / by Connie Barlow / Two New Web Pages on North Carolina Site Visits to Torreya have just been posted.
    Webmaster Connie Barlow has just posted photo-essays of August 2006 site visits to fruiting groves of Torreya in Asheville, North Carolina and Highlands, North Carolina (site suggested by Robert Zahner, below). There is also a new posting on the distribution of 2005 T. tax seeds.

  • 7/11/06 / by Bob Zahner / Mature grove of Torreya trees from Florida in Highlands, NC
    The local Torreya trees are on the old Harbison farm about two miles south of Highlands. Prof. Thomas Harbison made Highlands his home off and on from 1880 until he died in the 1930s. He was a field botanical collector for Harvard's Arnold Arboretum and for the herbaria at the University of North Carolina and at Vanderbilt's Biltmore Estate.He could have collected the Torreya seeds from the Florida source at any time about 1910 to 1920. There is no family record as to when the Highlands Torreya were planted, probably from seedlings he grew from seed. (He had a small commercial nursery here.) Harbison built his last house here in 1920, and the Torreya trees are located about 150 feet from the house. He may have planted them before the house was built, but probably not until shortly after. We will probably core one of the trees some day to determine its age.
        Anyway, they are beautiful, healthy trees, flowering and fruiting well every year that I've checked them. There are six trees, three male and three female. The largest stem is 16" in diameter, several are over 13" and two are smaller at about 7" and 8." The two tallest are well over 50 feet in height. The smaller are simply overtopped by the larger, for they all appear to be the same age. There are natural seedlings and saplings in the near vicinity. It appears that squirrels and other rodents consume most seed along with the fruits, but a few escape and germinate. The small Torreya grove is part of a hardwood forest of larger trees.
        You probably know that the largest recorded Florida Torreya is located on a farm near Norlina, NC, listed in the current register of big trees with a huge stem diameter of nearly three and a half feet, but only 53 feet tall. I have a photo of this tree taken in 1939, and even then (67 years ago) it was over two feet in diameter, a beautiful tree.
        I also have the names of several people who have seen the Harbison trees, and are very interested in "re"-establishing Torreya here in the southern Appalachians. Anyhow, rewilding Torreya privately seems to be a good possibility, like the American chestnut projects being done through two private organizations, completely ignored by government agencies.

  • 3/23/06 / by Dee Hope / Seed Production by a T. tax at Coker College, SC
    I worked at a garden in my home state of South Carolina for 7 years called Kalmia Gardens of Coker College. Are you aware that it has a mature Florida torreya, and several seedlings? I just wanted to pass this along in case it was not known. Hopefully, it is still healthy, and can provide seeds. I would welcome an email from interested parties wanting more details on this garden and/or a contact person there.
    email: DAHope@lpagroup.com

  • 3/20/06 / by Lee Barnes / Distribution of 2005 Torreya Seeds harvested at Biltmore Gardens, NC
    I've just now sent out eight emails offering Torreya seeds to Botanical Gardens suggested by Bill Alexander (NC Botanical Gardens, Chapel Hill, NC; Bernheim Arboretum, KY; Dawes Arboretum, OH; Duke Gardens, Durham, NC; JC Raulston Arboretum, Raleigh, NC; NC Arboretum, Asheville, NC; Arnold Arboretum, MA; and Arboretum de Villardebelle, FR.). I've requested their response by April 1st. I'm hoping that email requests will be received and acted upon quicker than by US Postal Service. If everyone is interested, this leaves us about 19 seeds for individuals — or two mailings. I'll wait until the 1st week in April to count requests, and then will open to other individuals who have requested seed. My sense is to ID the top interested folks that have facilities to germinate and pot up and grow out larger seedlings. Editor's note: Lee Barnes is the volunteer Torreya Guardian in charge of preparing and distributing T. tax seeds harvested by staff of the Biltmore Gardens, Asheville NC.

  • 2/06 / by Jeff Morris / Further Implications of Rewilding: Frasier Fir and Black Balsam
    My interest in evolutionary ecology has prompted me to successfully propogate warmer climate rare conifers for use in North Carolina. The T. taxifolia is the most recent example, and one that, finally, there are people like yourself who are interested in rewilding. My theory on evolutionary ecology is that with the advent of global warming (which I believe can only be slowed, but not reversed) we will be faced with many "rewilding" and "rezoning" of native plants and trees. I have watched the once great stands of Frasier Firs and Black Balsams in the Pisgah National Forest dwindle down to a fraction of what they once were in North Carolina. Acid rain and other factors that have led to their decline must be dealt with, I will not deny. But I believe that we must replace those dying forests with species that will thrive in the new conditions, even if we must go to other parts of the world to find those species. Otherwise, the hardwoods and scrub pines will devour the once-magnificant stands of old fir forests, and they will exist only in pictures and in cultivation. So far, this theory has not come into the mainstream, and the Torreya Guardian project is the closest I've seen to it.

    What I have found disturbing about the "mainstream" is that they claim that they want an endangered species to be saved from extinction, but then they don't want to even hear about assisted rewilding or adapting similar species from the same genus, but from other parts of the world. It seems that some of the "mainstreamists" would prefer the T. taxifolia to exist only on the back of their postcards seeking contributions for their national organizations' efforts — that one big failure would be preferable to their cause than the new thriving forests that can arise from assisted migration of compatible species.

    Call it "assisted evolution," if you will. If mainstream ecologists prefer to let them die before they'd allow assisted migration, then at what point will the actions of the Torreya Guardians shape the debate in allowing for the survival of other plant and tree species?

  • 10/05 / by Leigh Brooks / Century-old T. tax in Columbus GA
    Great historical info from Bill! I saw a large T. taxifolia in Columbus GA a few years ago in the historic district (photos below). The homes have date placards, and I think it was 1898. The tree had been hit by lightening before I was there and about half of it was dead as a result. The homeowners said that, before that, the tree was fine. It was about a foot dbh. There are supposedly some other old torreyas in this historic neighborhood but this was the only one I found.

        


  • 10/05 / by Rob Nicholson / Arnold Arboretum - T. tax & Taxus floridana
    As I worked at the Arnold 15 years I can attest that there were no plants of Torreya taxifolia in the collection when I started (1977) nor Taxus floridana. Torreya nucifera seems to be the only ironclad Torreya for the Boston area. T. grandis is currently in the outdoors collection but looks beaten after a hard winter. Taxus floridana is grown on the grounds currently but am not sure about Torreya taxifolia. [Note: Arnold Arboretum is associated with Harvard and is near Boston MA]


  • 10/05 / by Bill Alexander / Archival Records at Biltmore Gardens (Asheville NC)
    Biltmore archival records show that Torreya taxifolia was originally brought to the Biltmore in 1896-97 and was growing at the Arnold Arboretum at that time also. In the "Biltmore Nursery Dept. Outgoing Correspondence, Vol. I 1896-1897" there is a letter on p. 219 from C. Beadle to Prof. C. S. Sargent, Arnold Arboretum. Beadle mentions having received from a correspondent of his in Bristol, Florida,
    "a few plants each of Torreya taxifolia and Taxus floridana. I am quite interested to know if this latter species has ever been in cultivation. I know that the Torreya has; indeed, you have it at the Arnold Arboretum. If you have not plants of Taxus floridana, we will be pleased to send you some as soon as our stock is sufficently advanced to warrant the shipment."
    The letter continues with Beadle talking more about exchanging plants. The records indicate (p. 908) that on 4 March 1897 Beadle sends Sargent specimens of Taxus floridana.



       Download in PDF two articles, for and against assisted
       migration of Torreya taxifolia, published as the featured
       Forum in the Winter 2005 issue of Wild Earth. Download
       the pro and con articles separately for printing on standard   
       size paper. Or, for viewing the 2-article Forum as it
       appeared in publication (wide-screen, with all illustrations),
       download the "Forum."
       


  • FOR assisted migration, by Connie Barlow & Paul Martin  
     

  • ANTI assisted migration by Mark Schwartz
     

  • FORUM (both articles for wide screen)
     

    •            Click for Current Status of the T. tax Rewilding Project.


    WWW www.TorreyaGuardians.org