Research
DNA barcoding has been used to test species status of living plant specimens and herbarium specimens. In a recent project in collaboration with Queen’s University, Belfast, we used DNA barcoding to help determine evidence of food fraud. Samples of ground herbs were...
Research
Sea pea (Lathyrus japonicus Willd.) is a coastal plant with a wide circumpolar distribution range. Sea pea is a red-listed species in Ireland and is of high conservation priority. Only one extant population survives, but multiple ephemeral populations are recorded...
Research
Project Background The Irish flora has approximately 16 plants that are considered arctic or alpine. We are currently studying a group of arctic-alpine Saxifrages with the aim to decipher their geographical origins. One of these species, Saxifraga nivalis, is...
Research
Colin Kelleher (National Botanic Gardens) Project Background The Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) has a predominantly Mediterranean distribution. The Irish populations are disjunct from the major populations in the Mediterranean, Portugal and Spain. To date we...
Research
Project Background ForGen is a collaborative research programme involving University College Dublin, Coillte, Teagasc and the National Botanic Gardens. As part of the ForGen programme, we are currently undertaking a number of studies on the phylogeography and...
Research
Project Background Hottentot Fig (Carpobrotus edulis) is a popular garden plant from South Africa. It is also an aggressive invader of coastal habitats, which forms vast mats to the exclusion of all other plants. On the Gower peninsula of Wales and along the Cornish...
