Botanical Gardens

Botanical Gardens

Biology Department	عربى	Botanical Garden	Home Page	Ain Shams University
Written by: Hesham Loutfy Ass. Professor of Taxonomy
Botanical Garden Why & What		Herbarium	Some species Photos

Botanic gardens are institutions holding documented collections of living plants for the purposes of scientific research, conservation, display and education."

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Botanical Garden of Faculty of Education

The botanical Garden of the faculty of Education was created in October 1994 on a 700 square meters land located south west of the collage campus ,some of its goals are:

1. Providing live specimens for post graduate researches and under graduate practical courses as [systematic botany, morphology, anatomy, taxonomy, archegoniates, ecology, flora , physiology, etc.

2. Acting as a mini conservatory for rare and endangered species world wide as for example [ the relict taxa of the Lauraceae of the Tertiary laurel forests of Macaronesia as [Apollonias barbujana (Cav.) Bornm., Laurus azorica (Seub) Franco, Persia indica(L.) Spreng., etc.]

In the present time, the garden includes about 300 taxa belonging to about 70 families. About 60 taxa are either rare or very rare in Egypt , some of which are found exclusively in the garden in all Egypt [ Persia indica, Laurus azorica, Apollonias barbujana, Erythrina bentipoeme, Erythrina burrana]. A complete survey of the garden taxa can be searched at the 2001 version of the catalogue or index of the garden taxa located at the garden herbarium at the department of biological sciences and geology.

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The Herbarium

The herbarium contains 0ver 3000 specimens,these are mainly wild taxa collected from different geographic locations in Egypt.In addition,most of the cultivated taxa in the garden are represented. Herbarium specimens of taxa from other gardens as ORMAN and AZBAKEYYA were also introduced recently. The herbarium is located at the Biological Sciences and Geology Department at the biology building, ground floor [ground zero]. Several new constructions are going now in the herbarium room, to provide extra facilities for harboring more specimens

The style of the garden represents a highly compressed form[enormous number of taxa are grown together in a limited area[700 square meters].This fact makes daily maintenance a mandatory job so as to provide each taxon with light and a reasonable nitch to grow successfully. Some photos from the garden are presented below,

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Some of these are:

1. APOLLONIAS BARBUJANA [Lauraceae] confined exclusively to the garden in all Egypt , presented to the garden as a cadeau from JARDIN BOTANICO CANARIO at the Canary islands in 2001.A specimen was scent recently to the Botanical Garden of faculty of science ain shams university. A tree producing good timber known as BARBUSANO in the Canary islands , it is in danger of extinction.

2. LAURUS AZORICA [Lauraceae], confined exclusively to the garden in all Egypt , it is known as the Canary island laurel, it can be differentiated from the well known laurel [Laurus nobilis L.] by its different leaf scent and its more thin and slightly broader leaves.

3. PERSEA INDICA[LAURACEAE] , confined exclusively to the garden in all Egypt , presented to the garden as a cadeau from JARDIN BOTANICO CANARIO at the Canary islands in 2001,its fruits are the size of a small olive[contrary to the pear sized fruit of Persea Americana[ common Avocado].

4. VIBURNUM TINUS [CAPRIFOLIACEAE]

5.EPHEDRA [EPHEDRACEAE],the shrub,originally from Borg El Arab district, is seen climbing on Agathis robusta[Araucariaceae] .The drug Ephedrine is extracted from its parts.

6. OREOPANAX RETICULATUM [ARALIACEAE],common tree in old districts of Alexandria, but virtually abscent from new ones.

7. HOWEA FORSTERIANA[Kentia palm]

8. ILEX [AQUIFOLIACEAE] known as [Holly], its branches carring red fruits are sold in Christmas

9. PODOCARPUS [PODOCARPACEAE], Known as Buddist pine,it is one of few relict conifer trees dating from the Jurrassic era, it is characterized by its relatively broad leaves.

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Oreopanax reticulatum = Aralia reticulata

[Araliaceae] A common tree in old districts of Alexandria

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Howea forsteriana = Kentia forsteriana. Kentia palms are hardy,needing little maintenance once established

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Pleioginum solandri

produces edible fruits,in this photo,it is seen in the vicinity of another rare

tree[Fermiana simplex] The Fermiana[Sterculiaceae] is still bare,it produces leaves in May

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Podocarpus [Podocarpaceae] [known as Buddist pine]

Laurus azorica in the botanical garden of faculty of education is the sole survivor in Egypt after the parent tree was cut down in Alexandria in 2003

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Laurus azorica

Distinguished horticulturely from Laurus nobilis by its relatively thinner and broader leaves,young twigs are more tomentose,crushed leaves produce a weaker scent,more of a lemon scent than to a tipical laurel scent that characterize the more common Laurus nobilis .Also,propagation is more difficult,only 50% success with hormone treated tip cuttings compared with a nearly 100% success in Laurus nobilis Top

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Persea indica [produces fruits only of the size of a small olive fruit,contrary to the famous avocado]

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Viburnum tinus

Originally a cutting from the shrub at the botanical garden of faculty of science ain shams university

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Ilex

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Ephedra climbing on Agathis

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Apollonias

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Cephalotaxus

Cephalotaxus is a very rare conifer in Egypt with only another specimen growing at Orman garden

References

	Ilbert, R.;Yannakakis, I.; & Hassoun, J. ,1997. Alexandria [1860-1960]. The brief life of a cosmopolitan community Harpocrates publishing company-Alexandria.
	Press, J. R.; Short, M. J., Turland, N. J., (eds.) 1994. Flora of Madeira Natural History Museum
	Khalifa, S. F.; & Loutfy, M. H. A. 2006. Ornamental Cultivated Plant Collection [Special edition in the occasion of the first International Conference on Strategy of Botanical Gardens .Flora and Taxonomy research unit-Agricultural Museum Dokky Giza
	Khalifa, S. F., 2003. The Botanical Garden of Faculty of Science-Ain Shams University. Taeckholmia 23 (1)

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