University Herbarium

I am very pleased to report that the lovely native tree - Erythroxylum pungens - found in abundance and in bloom this week at Green Pastures has been definitively identified and the university professors Caminha and Fátima, one of whom studied at Kew, asked for small branches in flower for the university herbarium as they did not have this species in it. It was a joy to supply the university in this way.  

This partnership is really developing with the federal university forestry engineering and biology schools and is a continuation and development of such partnerships which we have maintained over many years. The university has now produced seedlings from seeds we supplied from the quite rare tree Vitex gardneriana and we are now carefully observing the one and only even rarer Sideroxylon obtusifolium tree that we have so that when it flowers and produces seeds we can then collect all the seeds and send them to the university so as to produce lots of seedlings. It is exciting caring for God's creation.

People, as happens every year, are already gathering at Green Pastures for the Camp. The official arrival time is in the afternoon but there are always plenty who manage to arrive early! May the Lord bless the camp and the big opening service this evening.