A 90-million-year-old “dinosaur tree” bore fruit for the first time.
In a quiet garden in Malvern, Worcestershire, one of the planet’s most ancient and endangered trees has just flowered and fruited for the first time in captivity.
The tree is a Wollemi pine (Wollemia nobilis), a living relic whose lineage stretches back more than 90 million years to the age of dinosaurs. Pamela and Alistair Thompson bought a small sapling in 2010 for around £70 and planted it in their back garden. Fourteen years later it towers over 4 metres tall and, this spring, produced its very first cones: dangling male cones and rounded female ones.
Until 1994 the species was known only from fossils and presumed extinct. Then a tiny wild population fewer than 100 adult trees was found hidden in a remote sandstone gorge west of Sydney. Today the Wollemi pine remains critically endangered and fiercely protected.
That a specimen growing in ordinary British soil has now reached reproductive maturity is extraordinary. The Thompsons plan to harvest seeds from the female cones and grow a new generation of trees, an effort that could bolster the species’ fragile future and broaden its presence in gardens and botanic collections worldwide.
At a time when species are vanishing faster than ever, the quiet triumph of a prehistoric pine bearing fruit in a suburban garden is a powerful reminder that, with care and a little luck, even the most ancient life can find a way forward.
@Hickenlooper Have you seen the banner at the top of the USDA FS homepage (https://t.co/SveyE8J7fh)? Regardless of which party is in a statement like this, this is a blatant violation of the Hatch Act and it should be revised immediately!
@RepJoeNeguse Have you seen the banner at the top of the USDA FS homepage (https://t.co/1C6db8G5d9)? Regardless of which party is in a statement like this, this is a blatant violation of the Hatch Act and it should be revised immediately!
Democrats need to shout loud and clear before and during campaigning, the cuts to Medicaid and Snap will not go into effect until after the midterms. @HC_Richardson 1/2 https://t.co/l0MwL7V2ey
How will midterm elections get manipulated? Check your state now for proof of citizenship legislation and speak up now! #midtermelections#vote https://t.co/hWS3mCS5Z9
I'm confident with this administration's track record of alternative facts, RFK Jr. will succeed to verify his belief that vaccines are the culprit behind autism. Especially with his handpicked replacements. https://t.co/EJFb9j36tJ.
He set a timeline of five months for identifying the growth of a disorder that has been heavily researched for decades across the globe. https://t.co/ZaVe3jaC05
I support no tax on tips but not on overtime. Not paying taxes on your overtime means you're paying less taxes during the year. You'll likely get bumped to a higher tax bracket and pay more in taxes in the long run. #taxes#OBBBA 1/3
It's a pay now or later scenario. If it looks too good to be true...
Why no tax on tips: Most service-type jobs factor tips to compensate for low wages. Consumers either opt to tip or not so they're not guaranteed. 2/3
Our firefighters and support personnel work hard to suppress wildland fires and protect surrounding communities. FireFighters on the active fire line put their lives in danger, active shooters should not be one of their live-threatening "watch outs." 2/2
So much vitriol and rhetoric in this country. As a Public Information Officer on a Complex Incident Management Team, I am heartbroken. 1/2 #FirefighterSafety#DontLetHateWin https://t.co/bRrxOtrs2E