Island plants

Poke-me-boy Acacia anegadenis

This viciously spiny tree from the island of Anegada in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) in the Caribbean only grows on limestone in a total area of less than 25 km2.

Anegada faces loss of its natural vegetation as houses are built and resorts are planned.

Safety briefing

Staff from the British Virgin Islands National Parks Trust and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew have brought poke-me-boy into cultivation for the first time.

Regular botanical surveys monitor any changes in the population of poke-me-boy in the wild.

Its seeds are in safe storage in the Millennium Seed Bank at Wakehurst Place and a batch is being returned to the seed bank at the J.R. O’Neal Botanic Garden in BVI. Storage under cold dry conditions increases the seeds’ life-span.

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Carry on to: St Helena ebony