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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Helena Horton Environment reporter

Scientists transplant soil fungi in race to save world’s threatened orchids

The orchid Encyclia candollei, native to Central America, at the Chelsea flower show this week
The orchid Encyclia candollei, native to Central America, at the Chelsea flower show this week. Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

Scientists are racing against the clock to save the world’s orchids by discovering the soil fungi they need to thrive, breeding them and then, in a first for conservation, transplanting them into orchid habitats.

Among the showy blooms at Chelsea flower show this week was a moss-covered exhibit, sprouting from which were the types of rare, native flowers one does not normally see at horticultural exhibits.

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