It is estimated that at least 20% of all species on Earth now face extinction, with as many as 150 species being permanently expunged from the world's biological inventory every day. We urgently need...
Plants are great travellers and have colonised, flourished but also perished in many places. Patterns in plant distribution have emerged over many millions of years of evolution. The southeast Asia b...
Written by Jinlong Zhang With the publication of the fourth volume of Flora of Hong Kong (Hu & Wu, 2008) in 2011 and the Check List of Hong Kong Plants in 2012, 2,175 native plant species have be...
Using DNA forensics to uncover the mysteries of the medicinal orchid trade in Hong Kong
16 March 2023
16 March 2023
Many people are fascinated by orchids because of their beautiful flowers. However, when processed orchids or their parts, such as leaves, tubers and roots, are sold as traditional Chinese medicine (T...
To plant a tree, we dig a hole, place the root ball of the seedling inside, and back-fill the gaps with soil. It is as simple as that. However, this is only the beginning of a massive, long-term comm...
As we move into the flowering season of the ivy tree (Schefflera heptaphylla), a common species native to Hong Kong, we can hear the buzzing of numerous nectar-craving insects.Ivy Treein bloom at KFB...
Incense Tree (Aquilaria sinensis) is a precious tree species found only in Hong Kong and south China. This tree is of high historical and cultural significance as it is believed to have given rise to...
If you come across a plant in Hong Kong and you wished to know its name, how would you find out? In this article, we will explore and explain how a library of plant diversity is build up and organize...
Like many other living organisms on Earth, trees face numerous challenges over their lifetime, including competition for water, nutrients and sunlight. On top of that, trees can suffer from growth de...
Dating back as early as the 6th century BC, the traditional craft of map making has allowed humans to navigate. Fast forward to the 21st Century and, along with many other advancements in technology,...