Rosemary Newton

I have a background in plant ecology and physiology, having completed a Masters degree in Botany at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. I joined the MSBP in January 2005 as a Seed Specialist in the Technology and Training Section. My work consists primarily of studies on seed longevity and germination / dormancy. In January 2006 I registered for a part-time higher degree in research under the supervision of Dr Fiona Hay at Kew and Professor Richard Ellis at the Unversity of Reading. This research focuses on the horticulturally and medicinally important Amaryllidaceae family, which has centres of diversity in Africa, Europe and America. Seed morphology and storage behaviour in this family are very diverse. Storage behaviour ranges from seeds that cannot be dried and stored by conventional methods (recalcitrant seeds) to orthodox seeds that are dried and stored in the seed bank at -20°C. 

My studies will examine desiccation tolerance, germination requirements, comparative seed longevity and low temperature storage in a wide range of species, with the aim of identifying appropriate treatments to maximise desiccation tolerance and seed longevity. This is done in order to ensure high quality conservation of collections in the Seed Bank. The findings of this study will have implications for ecosystem conservation and species restoration from seed.