1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,559 Cate Blanchett: You really are on the edge of South Downs. Could 2 00:00:04,559 --> 00:00:06,570 Cate Blanchett: you describe it as a natural landscape or... 3 00:00:06,570 --> 00:00:08,760 Ted Chapman: So, the landscape we're driving through now is not really 4 00:00:08,760 --> 00:00:11,610 Ted Chapman: natural. No. So, these fields are arable fields, so they 5 00:00:11,610 --> 00:00:15,540 Ted Chapman: would normally be gray cereals, but for this year, at 6 00:00:15,540 --> 00:00:17,939 Ted Chapman: least they've been sown with it looks like some kind 7 00:00:17,940 --> 00:00:19,860 Ted Chapman: of wild seed mix. 8 00:00:20,400 --> 00:00:23,910 Cate Blanchett: I'm in a Jeep lurching over a dusty single track 9 00:00:23,910 --> 00:00:27,780 Cate Blanchett: road where deep in the South Downs National Park, which 10 00:00:27,780 --> 00:00:31,080 Cate Blanchett: is just beyond Brighton on England's southern coast. 11 00:00:31,080 --> 00:00:33,540 Ted Chapman: Skylarks are taking advantage of that because they nest in 12 00:00:33,540 --> 00:00:34,919 Ted Chapman: the ground. So, they're probably nesting. 13 00:00:34,920 --> 00:00:38,340 Cate Blanchett: You can hear them outside. That's Ted Chapman behind the 14 00:00:38,340 --> 00:00:42,990 Cate Blanchett: Wheel UK Conservation Partnerships Coordinator at Kew's Millennium Seed Bank 15 00:00:42,990 --> 00:00:46,560 Cate Blanchett: at Wakehurst. He's also my guide for today. 16 00:00:46,950 --> 00:00:49,950 Ted Chapman: So, these hills that we're driving over now are all 17 00:00:49,950 --> 00:00:52,470 Ted Chapman: chalk, and the chalk is really close to the surface. 18 00:00:53,130 --> 00:00:57,240 Ted Chapman: So, the soil here is only 10 or 20 centimeters deep and 19 00:00:57,240 --> 00:01:03,270 Ted Chapman: that very chalky soil, very low fertility, very sharply drained, 20 00:01:03,270 --> 00:01:06,000 Ted Chapman: it drains really quickly. That's really what informs the type 21 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:09,930 Ted Chapman: of vegetation that we have, and that's what makes this 22 00:01:10,470 --> 00:01:14,160 Ted Chapman: habitat special because these types of soil conditions and rock 23 00:01:14,160 --> 00:01:15,990 Ted Chapman: conditions are not found very commonly. 24 00:01:18,209 --> 00:01:21,690 Cate Blanchett: We're heading to Castle Hill National Nature Reserve, which is 25 00:01:21,690 --> 00:01:25,170 Cate Blanchett: looked after by Natural England, and I'm joining Ted and 26 00:01:25,170 --> 00:01:28,770 Cate Blanchett: his team to collect wild seeds. Is this somewhere where 27 00:01:28,770 --> 00:01:32,970 Cate Blanchett: you'd come see collecting a lot? Is this an annual pilgrimage? 28 00:01:33,450 --> 00:01:36,240 Ted Chapman: So, we've collected a lot of seed in Castle Hill 29 00:01:37,110 --> 00:01:40,020 Ted Chapman: in sites like this, because the chalk grassland supports an 30 00:01:40,020 --> 00:01:43,860 Ted Chapman: exceptionally diverse flora, and many of those species are highly 31 00:01:43,860 --> 00:01:48,570 Ted Chapman: specialized and quite rare. So, because we're often targeting threatened 32 00:01:48,570 --> 00:01:51,480 Ted Chapman: species, we're often found in places like this. 33 00:01:59,220 --> 00:02:03,150 Cate Blanchett: The MSB's central mission is to gather wild seeds from 34 00:02:03,150 --> 00:02:06,660 Cate Blanchett: across the globe, preserving them to safeguard the future of 35 00:02:06,660 --> 00:02:10,919 Cate Blanchett: our planet. This work focuses on species under threat around 36 00:02:10,919 --> 00:02:15,090 Cate Blanchett: the world, often found in far- flung countries. However, you 37 00:02:15,090 --> 00:02:17,700 Cate Blanchett: might be surprised to know that some of the species 38 00:02:17,700 --> 00:02:21,269 Cate Blanchett: most in need of protection are much closer to home. 39 00:02:21,690 --> 00:02:26,580 Cate Blanchett: It's just magnificent. It's so wide and open and there's a big smudge 40 00:02:26,580 --> 00:02:28,410 Cate Blanchett: of red down there though poppies. 41 00:02:28,410 --> 00:02:30,270 Ted Chapman: Yeah, we're going to get a close- up view of 42 00:02:30,270 --> 00:02:31,440 Ted Chapman: these beautiful poppies. 43 00:02:31,860 --> 00:02:37,740 Cate Blanchett: But just as important as place is time. In seed 44 00:02:37,740 --> 00:02:42,930 Cate Blanchett: collecting, timing is everything. What we're hoping for today is that 45 00:02:42,930 --> 00:02:47,010 Cate Blanchett: our visit coincides with the precise moment the seeds are 46 00:02:47,010 --> 00:02:49,770 Cate Blanchett: ready to be gathered, so that we can follow their 47 00:02:49,770 --> 00:02:54,090 Cate Blanchett: journey as they're carefully processed and then stored for safekeeping 48 00:02:54,330 --> 00:02:57,330 Cate Blanchett: in the vaults of the Millennium Seed Bank at Wakehurst. 49 00:02:59,220 --> 00:03:03,720 Cate Blanchett: I am Cate Blanchett, Kew's ambassador for Wakehurst, and this 50 00:03:03,870 --> 00:03:09,480 Cate Blanchett: is Unearthed: The need for seeds. Episode two, the present. 51 00:03:12,660 --> 00:03:14,400 Ted Chapman: So, we need to get through this gate. 52 00:03:14,669 --> 00:03:19,290 Cate Blanchett: Yeah, I can do it. It's the gate etiquette. You 53 00:03:19,290 --> 00:03:23,010 Cate Blanchett: learn that in Australia very quickly. Oh, I see those 54 00:03:23,010 --> 00:03:23,760 Cate Blanchett: two bars there. 55 00:03:24,060 --> 00:03:27,720 Ted Chapman: So, the last thing we want is off- road bikes, off- 56 00:03:27,720 --> 00:03:30,929 Ted Chapman: road vehicles coming into the reserve and destroying the habitat, 57 00:03:30,930 --> 00:03:33,720 Ted Chapman: which would just happen so easily. You can imagine these 58 00:03:33,750 --> 00:03:37,619 Ted Chapman: habitats takes centuries or millennia to evolve, but only seconds 59 00:03:37,620 --> 00:03:38,250 Ted Chapman: to destroy. 60 00:03:38,250 --> 00:03:41,550 Cate Blanchett: Yes, yeah. Gosh, there's this team flowers, isn't it? 61 00:03:41,550 --> 00:03:41,610 Ted Chapman: Yeah. 62 00:03:44,040 --> 00:03:44,041 Cate Blanchett: They're heavy. 63 00:03:44,041 --> 00:03:52,830 Ted Chapman: They are heavier. Are you okay with that? And then you twist it at the top. That's 64 00:03:52,830 --> 00:03:55,501 Ted Chapman: it. Oh, great. Okay. 65 00:03:55,501 --> 00:03:55,502 Cate Blanchett: Here we go. 66 00:03:55,501 --> 00:04:01,650 Ted Chapman: Okay. In we go. 67 00:04:03,270 --> 00:04:06,270 Cate Blanchett: We pass through multiple gates and descend into a valley. 68 00:04:06,600 --> 00:04:09,990 Cate Blanchett: It's wildly overgrown with shrubs and vegetation encroaching on the 69 00:04:09,990 --> 00:04:13,530 Cate Blanchett: track. And then as we lurch around a corner, the 70 00:04:13,530 --> 00:04:17,850 Cate Blanchett: tree's clear and I'm greeted with the most beautiful vista. 71 00:04:18,960 --> 00:04:24,299 Cate Blanchett: Oh my goodness, this is magnificent. It looks so ancient 72 00:04:24,900 --> 00:04:27,390 Cate Blanchett: because the hills are just given away to a flat 73 00:04:27,660 --> 00:04:32,130 Cate Blanchett: plane. It's got a smattering of poppies. And what's the 74 00:04:32,130 --> 00:04:35,250 Cate Blanchett: yellow? Is that this grass... Man, it's so beautiful. It's 75 00:04:35,250 --> 00:04:38,580 Cate Blanchett: almost like someone's taken a brush with a thousand colours. 76 00:04:39,300 --> 00:04:42,839 Ted Chapman: Yes, yeah. So, the reserve is on these steep hillsides 77 00:04:42,839 --> 00:04:44,310 Ted Chapman: and then at the bottom of the valley, we've got 78 00:04:44,310 --> 00:04:47,550 Ted Chapman: this flatter area with deeper soils. And then we've got 79 00:04:47,550 --> 00:04:50,430 Ted Chapman: this wash of poppies. So, beautiful. 80 00:04:50,730 --> 00:04:53,099 Cate Blanchett: Something out of The Wizard of Oz. So, if you find 81 00:04:53,100 --> 00:04:56,610 Cate Blanchett: me asleep in there, rescue me. 82 00:04:57,270 --> 00:04:59,520 Ted Chapman: So, the slope ahead of us is where we're going 83 00:04:59,520 --> 00:05:01,620 Ted Chapman: to be doing our harvesting today. And this is Castle 84 00:05:01,620 --> 00:05:02,700 Ted Chapman: Hill itself. 85 00:05:02,760 --> 00:05:06,810 Cate Blanchett: You mean the green quite vertiginous- looking slope ahead of 86 00:05:06,839 --> 00:05:07,680 Cate Blanchett: us that's got the... 87 00:05:07,830 --> 00:05:08,700 Ted Chapman: Exactly. So, we can see- 88 00:05:08,701 --> 00:05:08,702 Cate Blanchett: The strawberry on the top. 89 00:05:08,702 --> 00:05:13,080 Ted Chapman: ... we've got the scrub at the top. We've got 90 00:05:13,140 --> 00:05:16,950 Ted Chapman: this arable field at the bottom. We've got this slightly 91 00:05:16,950 --> 00:05:21,539 Ted Chapman: flatter, rough bit in between. And that area was ploughed 92 00:05:21,540 --> 00:05:24,630 Ted Chapman: in the second world war. And that's why even now, 93 00:05:24,630 --> 00:05:28,289 Ted Chapman: it's still very different to the ancient short grassland, which 94 00:05:28,290 --> 00:05:29,250 Ted Chapman: is on the steep slope. 95 00:05:29,490 --> 00:05:31,710 Cate Blanchett: And what was attempted to be grown there? 96 00:05:32,670 --> 00:05:34,890 Ted Chapman: That would've been crops for eating in that dig for 97 00:05:34,890 --> 00:05:38,790 Ted Chapman: victory effort. So, these soils are with chemical fertilizers, they're 98 00:05:38,790 --> 00:05:43,290 Ted Chapman: quite amenable to growing things like cereals, wheat, barley, flax. 99 00:05:43,410 --> 00:05:47,130 Ted Chapman: Now that farming ceased some decades ago, but even with 100 00:05:47,130 --> 00:05:50,460 Ted Chapman: decades of very careful management, you can see the grassland 101 00:05:50,460 --> 00:05:52,349 Ted Chapman: at the bottom of the slope is very different to 102 00:05:52,350 --> 00:05:53,490 Ted Chapman: the grasslands on the sides. 103 00:05:53,490 --> 00:05:55,350 Cate Blanchett: It's really green and tufty. 104 00:05:55,470 --> 00:05:58,560 Ted Chapman: Yeah. So, that is good, but we don't want too 105 00:05:58,560 --> 00:06:00,089 Ted Chapman: much of that. We need a good balance. 106 00:06:01,260 --> 00:06:04,770 Cate Blanchett: So, what makes this spot so special apart from its 107 00:06:04,770 --> 00:06:05,820 Cate Blanchett: incredible beauty? 108 00:06:06,029 --> 00:06:09,630 Ted Chapman: It's really the quality of the chalk grassland. So, we're 109 00:06:09,630 --> 00:06:11,310 Ted Chapman: going to be in one of the nicest patches in 110 00:06:11,310 --> 00:06:15,150 Ted Chapman: just a second. You'll see the diversity of species and they're 111 00:06:15,300 --> 00:06:18,000 Ted Chapman: all tiny weeny because it's so infertile, but there are 112 00:06:18,240 --> 00:06:21,000 Ted Chapman: many, many species packed in. So, we can record 40 113 00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:24,480 Ted Chapman: or more species in a square metre here. So, this 114 00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:27,870 Ted Chapman: is one of the most plant- diverse habitats in Western 115 00:06:27,870 --> 00:06:31,560 Ted Chapman: Europe on this small scale. So, it's really special floristically 116 00:06:31,560 --> 00:06:34,200 Ted Chapman: and it's of course the vegetation then supports the butterflies, 117 00:06:34,200 --> 00:06:37,049 Ted Chapman: the other invertebrates, the birds that are associated with the 118 00:06:37,050 --> 00:06:41,070 Ted Chapman: invertebrates and so forth. So, that's really why this is 119 00:06:41,070 --> 00:06:42,180 Ted Chapman: such a special place. 120 00:06:44,670 --> 00:06:47,700 Cate Blanchett: After a quick safety briefing from Ted and his colleague, 121 00:06:47,730 --> 00:06:52,410 Cate Blanchett: Isabel Negri, UK Conservation projects officer at the MSB, we start 122 00:06:52,410 --> 00:06:55,830 Cate Blanchett: to clamber up the hill. We wade through some tall 123 00:06:55,830 --> 00:06:59,100 Cate Blanchett: grasses at the bottom, but they soon thin out. There's 124 00:07:00,330 --> 00:07:04,500 Cate Blanchett: so many varieties of plants and I'm sure a myriad 125 00:07:04,500 --> 00:07:07,529 Cate Blanchett: of insects all thriving underneath my feet. 126 00:07:07,740 --> 00:07:10,680 Ted Chapman: We try to tread lightly in habitats like this where 127 00:07:10,680 --> 00:07:15,420 Ted Chapman: we can. So, we've got into the chalk grassland. It's 128 00:07:15,420 --> 00:07:16,050 Ted Chapman: very low. 129 00:07:17,130 --> 00:07:18,120 Cate Blanchett: And not as dense. 130 00:07:18,150 --> 00:07:22,440 Ted Chapman: Much, much less dense. And if you start looking into 131 00:07:22,440 --> 00:07:26,190 Ted Chapman: the sword, you can see there are lots of different species, different 132 00:07:26,190 --> 00:07:30,450 Ted Chapman: grasses, different species, and they're all little thistle there, a little bedstraw 133 00:07:30,450 --> 00:07:36,690 Ted Chapman: there, all growing intermeshed, one with another. And underneath, you can 134 00:07:36,690 --> 00:07:40,890 Ted Chapman: see it now looking very dry and droughty this grey soil. 135 00:07:40,890 --> 00:07:44,489 Ted Chapman: That's the very chalky alkaline soil. So, this site is 136 00:07:44,490 --> 00:07:48,450 Ted Chapman: grazed by cattle. Grazing is essential because without the grazing 137 00:07:48,900 --> 00:07:51,780 Ted Chapman: this would revert through scrub to woodland and the grassland 138 00:07:51,780 --> 00:07:54,060 Ted Chapman: would be lost. So, that sustained grazing at the right 139 00:07:54,060 --> 00:07:58,110 Ted Chapman: level over centuries and centuries is what has created and 140 00:07:58,110 --> 00:07:59,130 Ted Chapman: maintained this landscape. 141 00:07:59,400 --> 00:08:02,400 Cate Blanchett: As Ted started pointing out different plants, I began to 142 00:08:02,400 --> 00:08:05,940 Cate Blanchett: think I was getting rather good at spotting unusual species. 143 00:08:06,270 --> 00:08:07,470 Cate Blanchett: I should work at the MSB. 144 00:08:07,860 --> 00:08:12,150 Ted Chapman: Let's head up. We'll find... There's always so much to see. 145 00:08:12,330 --> 00:08:14,490 Cate Blanchett: Yes. It's hard not to get waylaid. 146 00:08:14,580 --> 00:08:14,970 Ted Chapman: Yeah. 147 00:08:14,970 --> 00:08:15,660 Cate Blanchett: What's that little? 148 00:08:17,040 --> 00:08:19,351 Ted Chapman: That is rabbit poo. 149 00:08:19,351 --> 00:08:21,780 Cate Blanchett: Oh, great. I might put that in my pocket 150 00:08:21,780 --> 00:08:23,130 Ted Chapman: So, we don't aim to collect that. 151 00:08:23,130 --> 00:08:28,440 Cate Blanchett: We can use it later. Chocolate covered rabbit poo. Here I 152 00:08:28,440 --> 00:08:34,620 Cate Blanchett: was, thinking I'd found a rare seed rabbit poo. Clearly, 153 00:08:34,620 --> 00:08:38,610 Cate Blanchett: I'm not going to get a job at Wakehurst. After 154 00:08:38,610 --> 00:08:42,270 Cate Blanchett: my identification of the rabbit poo, we continued up the 155 00:08:42,270 --> 00:08:45,420 Cate Blanchett: hill making our way towards some orange markers. 156 00:08:45,720 --> 00:08:50,490 Ted Chapman: So, these markers mark out where we've got a really lovely 157 00:08:50,490 --> 00:08:53,550 Ted Chapman: population of yellow rattle. So, yellow rattle is what we've 158 00:08:53,550 --> 00:08:55,200 Ted Chapman: come here to collect today. 159 00:08:55,320 --> 00:08:57,690 Cate Blanchett: And what's so important about the yellow rattle? 160 00:08:58,380 --> 00:09:03,210 Ted Chapman: So, yellow rattle is a semi- parasitic species. So, that 161 00:09:03,210 --> 00:09:06,660 Ted Chapman: means it produces its own food, but it also parasitizes 162 00:09:06,660 --> 00:09:10,050 Ted Chapman: other species growing with it. And that means it reduces 163 00:09:10,050 --> 00:09:12,990 Ted Chapman: their vigor. And that makes it quite important in this 164 00:09:12,990 --> 00:09:16,679 Ted Chapman: habitat, because it helps balance the really vigorous species against 165 00:09:16,679 --> 00:09:19,260 Ted Chapman: the more delicate species and allows those more delicate species 166 00:09:19,260 --> 00:09:23,280 Ted Chapman: to thrive. So, it's really very important for the kind 167 00:09:23,280 --> 00:09:24,691 Ted Chapman: of function of the plants growing here. 168 00:09:24,691 --> 00:09:25,590 Cate Blanchett: It's a regulator. 169 00:09:25,620 --> 00:09:29,850 Ted Chapman: It's a regulator, like a community engineer almost. It's found 170 00:09:29,850 --> 00:09:33,690 Ted Chapman: in a lot of grassland sites. We specifically need to 171 00:09:33,690 --> 00:09:35,760 Ted Chapman: collect it now because we've used quite a lot of 172 00:09:35,760 --> 00:09:39,600 Ted Chapman: the collection that we have for research work that we've 173 00:09:39,600 --> 00:09:44,160 Ted Chapman: done looking at the germination needs of this species. So, 174 00:09:44,160 --> 00:09:46,410 Ted Chapman: yellow rattle is actually a species which has a very 175 00:09:46,410 --> 00:09:50,819 Ted Chapman: narrow temperature window in which it can germinate. And so, 176 00:09:50,910 --> 00:09:52,980 Ted Chapman: we've done some work and Isabel has been involved in 177 00:09:52,980 --> 00:09:56,790 Ted Chapman: this to work out exactly what the minimum and maximum 178 00:09:56,790 --> 00:10:00,059 Ted Chapman: temperature range that yellow rattle needs. And then we model 179 00:10:00,059 --> 00:10:02,610 Ted Chapman: that against climate change. So, we think in 50 years' 180 00:10:02,610 --> 00:10:06,270 Ted Chapman: time, will the climate still provide the conditions that yellow 181 00:10:06,270 --> 00:10:09,900 Ted Chapman: rattle and other species need to germinate? So, many species 182 00:10:09,900 --> 00:10:13,469 Ted Chapman: are resilient and they will be able to regenerate successfully 183 00:10:13,800 --> 00:10:16,559 Ted Chapman: in a warm climate. But yellow rattle is an example 184 00:10:16,559 --> 00:10:19,530 Ted Chapman: of a species which is quite vulnerable, because it needs 185 00:10:19,530 --> 00:10:24,449 Ted Chapman: cold winter conditions to break dormancy and germinate. So, it's 186 00:10:24,450 --> 00:10:27,360 Ted Chapman: important to understand that and start thinking about how we 187 00:10:27,360 --> 00:10:31,410 Ted Chapman: can manage grasslands and restoration projects to counter that and 188 00:10:31,650 --> 00:10:35,220 Ted Chapman: build adaptation and make sure this particularly important species survives. 189 00:10:36,390 --> 00:10:39,929 Ted Chapman: So, we've used seed to support that research, so we 190 00:10:39,929 --> 00:10:42,330 Ted Chapman: need to replenish that seed in the seed bank. So, we've got it 191 00:10:42,330 --> 00:10:44,670 Ted Chapman: for next time. So, the first thing we're going to 192 00:10:44,670 --> 00:10:46,620 Ted Chapman: do is find similar rattle and take a look at 193 00:10:46,620 --> 00:10:50,610 Ted Chapman: it. Some specimens here. 194 00:10:50,610 --> 00:10:54,870 Cate Blanchett: It's got a sort of a reddish brown stem with almost like 195 00:10:54,960 --> 00:10:57,329 Cate Blanchett: two little pods, green pods. 196 00:10:57,390 --> 00:11:04,770 Ted Chapman: That's right. Yeah. Will it rattle? That's the seed rattling 197 00:11:04,770 --> 00:11:06,480 Ted Chapman: around and that's how it gets its name. 198 00:11:06,540 --> 00:11:08,400 Cate Blanchett: So, you want to collect them when they're dried? 199 00:11:08,429 --> 00:11:10,830 Ted Chapman: Exactly right. So, we want to collect seed at the 200 00:11:10,830 --> 00:11:13,800 Ted Chapman: point of natural dispersal. So, that's when it's being dispersed 201 00:11:13,800 --> 00:11:17,910 Ted Chapman: into the environment. That's when it's mature, it's when its 202 00:11:17,910 --> 00:11:19,830 Ted Chapman: longevity. So, the amount of time it will be able to 203 00:11:19,830 --> 00:11:22,020 Ted Chapman: survive in the seed bank is at its greatest. 204 00:11:22,500 --> 00:11:25,860 Cate Blanchett: It struck me as almost paradoxical that we were gathering 205 00:11:25,860 --> 00:11:29,280 Cate Blanchett: seeds from the very habitat where I just learned how 206 00:11:29,280 --> 00:11:33,540 Cate Blanchett: vital they are as nature's own community engineers. But Ted 207 00:11:33,540 --> 00:11:37,110 Cate Blanchett: and his team work by a clear principle. You never 208 00:11:37,110 --> 00:11:39,690 Cate Blanchett: take more than 20% of the seeds in the field. 209 00:11:40,679 --> 00:11:43,350 Cate Blanchett: Each of the pods are filled with tiny seeds. And 210 00:11:43,350 --> 00:11:46,830 Cate Blanchett: so, our collection begins with some counting. 211 00:11:50,490 --> 00:11:54,240 Ted Chapman: Okay, I make that 25 in my patch. 212 00:11:55,170 --> 00:11:56,730 Cate Blanchett: There's quite a lot here actually. 213 00:11:57,120 --> 00:11:58,050 Isabel Negri: How many did you find? 214 00:11:58,200 --> 00:12:02,520 Cate Blanchett: I think about between 35 and 40 in a square meter. 215 00:12:02,880 --> 00:12:02,910 Isabel Negri: Oh. 216 00:12:02,939 --> 00:12:09,030 Ted Chapman: Okay. Yeah, we average at about 20 plants per square meter. 217 00:12:09,840 --> 00:12:11,160 Cate Blanchett: And a little bit of maths. 218 00:12:11,490 --> 00:12:13,350 Ted Chapman: I've crunched the numbers and I can tell you that 219 00:12:13,350 --> 00:12:16,950 Ted Chapman: we have approximately 1. 4 million seeds in our sampling 220 00:12:16,950 --> 00:12:19,230 Ted Chapman: area here of yellow rattle. 221 00:12:19,230 --> 00:12:19,530 Cate Blanchett: Yeah, down. 222 00:12:20,190 --> 00:12:22,470 Ted Chapman: There's always tonnes more seed than you think there is. 223 00:12:22,679 --> 00:12:26,190 Cate Blanchett: And just before we start collecting, there's one more important step. 224 00:12:26,250 --> 00:12:28,319 Ted Chapman: If you've got some seed in your hand, Isabel- 225 00:12:28,530 --> 00:12:28,530 Isabel Negri: Yes. 226 00:12:28,530 --> 00:12:30,390 Ted Chapman: ... shall we see if we can do a cut test? 227 00:12:33,720 --> 00:12:34,319 Isabel Negri: Yeah. I'll pass it to Kate. There you go. 228 00:12:34,620 --> 00:12:37,830 Cate Blanchett: A cut test is used to determine whether the seeds 229 00:12:37,860 --> 00:12:38,880 Cate Blanchett: are of good quality. 230 00:12:39,210 --> 00:12:40,290 Ted Chapman: So, I'm going to give you the tools of the 231 00:12:40,290 --> 00:12:43,260 Ted Chapman: trade. So, some snips, just watch yourself. 232 00:12:43,410 --> 00:12:45,059 Cate Blanchett: Little, they're very sharp scissors. 233 00:12:45,240 --> 00:12:50,730 Ted Chapman: And so, the question is, can you grip that seed 234 00:12:50,730 --> 00:12:54,330 Ted Chapman: in the end of your fingertips? Carefully slice off the top. 235 00:12:54,390 --> 00:12:56,040 Cate Blanchett: Am I going into the dark part of the seed? 236 00:12:56,040 --> 00:12:59,819 Ted Chapman: In the dark part, yeah, right through the middle. Nice. And then I'll give you that 237 00:13:00,480 --> 00:13:02,309 Ted Chapman: lens. And then if you hold up joy and then 238 00:13:02,309 --> 00:13:04,530 Ted Chapman: have a look, see if you can see- 239 00:13:05,460 --> 00:13:05,491 Cate Blanchett: Oh gosh. 240 00:13:05,491 --> 00:13:10,081 Ted Chapman: ... anything white and flowery in there. 241 00:13:10,081 --> 00:13:12,870 Cate Blanchett: Well, on the edge of the seed, there's a tiny bit 242 00:13:12,870 --> 00:13:17,070 Cate Blanchett: of... It almost looks like someone's moved to a white pencil 243 00:13:18,420 --> 00:13:19,620 Cate Blanchett: along the edge of it. 244 00:13:19,770 --> 00:13:20,731 Ted Chapman: That's probably what it will look like is like... 245 00:13:20,731 --> 00:13:20,940 Cate Blanchett: Do you want to check? 246 00:13:20,940 --> 00:13:24,480 Ted Chapman: It will look like a little white, 247 00:13:24,929 --> 00:13:28,230 Cate Blanchett: Little tiny little dots. You see? 248 00:13:28,679 --> 00:13:30,660 Ted Chapman: So, that's the end of sperm of the seed. It's its 249 00:13:30,720 --> 00:13:33,330 Ted Chapman: food store. So, sometimes we can also see the embryo, 250 00:13:33,330 --> 00:13:36,360 Ted Chapman: which is the little seedling waiting to come out. And if we 251 00:13:36,360 --> 00:13:38,490 Ted Chapman: can see those things, it gives a clue that the seed 252 00:13:38,490 --> 00:13:40,770 Ted Chapman: has got the potential to germinate. We don't know if 253 00:13:40,770 --> 00:13:44,040 Ted Chapman: it definitely will, but it potentially could. If it's empty 254 00:13:44,160 --> 00:13:47,100 Ted Chapman: or moldy or there's a grub, then we know it's 255 00:13:47,100 --> 00:13:50,130 Ted Chapman: not good. So, the cut test is a really important 256 00:13:50,130 --> 00:13:53,640 Ted Chapman: way we go about in the field just assessing the 257 00:13:53,640 --> 00:13:57,809 Ted Chapman: likely quality of the seed. Yep. That seed's good. Yep. 258 00:13:58,470 --> 00:14:01,260 Ted Chapman: So, yellow rattles, it's a very thin seed. 259 00:14:01,380 --> 00:14:03,329 Cate Blanchett: Yes. And the bulk of it's dark. 260 00:14:03,330 --> 00:14:08,010 Ted Chapman: And the bulk of it's dark. But those white flowery bits tell me that that 261 00:14:08,010 --> 00:14:11,250 Ted Chapman: seed is good. So, we've cut tested five in total, 262 00:14:11,250 --> 00:14:12,870 Ted Chapman: four of which were good and one of which was 263 00:14:12,870 --> 00:14:15,570 Ted Chapman: not good. So, we could say for the purposes of 264 00:14:15,570 --> 00:14:22,050 Ted Chapman: our collection today, that about 80% of the seed here 265 00:14:22,350 --> 00:14:26,460 Ted Chapman: is full and good. So, what I would do now 266 00:14:26,520 --> 00:14:30,000 Ted Chapman: is I'm going to take my 1. 4 million seeds 267 00:14:30,000 --> 00:14:33,210 Ted Chapman: in this whole population. I'm going to work out 80% 268 00:14:33,210 --> 00:14:39,360 Ted Chapman: of that. So, you've got 1, 120,000 approximately good seed 269 00:14:39,420 --> 00:14:42,690 Ted Chapman: in the population. But our absolute maximum that we could 270 00:14:42,690 --> 00:14:48,090 Ted Chapman: collect here is only 20% of that seed, which is 224, 271 00:14:48,540 --> 00:14:50,880 Ted Chapman: 000 seed. So, there's tons of seed here. We don't 272 00:14:50,880 --> 00:14:53,250 Ted Chapman: need worry about depleting the natural population. 273 00:14:53,820 --> 00:14:58,380 Cate Blanchett: Over one million seeds are available here, an astonishing number. 274 00:14:58,590 --> 00:15:00,780 Ted Chapman: To make our conservation collection, we're going to want to 275 00:15:00,780 --> 00:15:02,910 Ted Chapman: get 25 heads each because there are three of us 276 00:15:02,910 --> 00:15:06,090 Ted Chapman: collecting today. So, we're pretty much ready to go. 277 00:15:06,330 --> 00:15:09,810 Cate Blanchett: We fan out, walking slowly, each of us following our 278 00:15:09,810 --> 00:15:13,380 Cate Blanchett: own line in parallel with one another gathering as we go. 279 00:15:13,740 --> 00:15:17,400 Ted Chapman: We're walking towards that orange marker. It's fine if we 280 00:15:17,670 --> 00:15:19,440 Ted Chapman: wave around a little bit. It doesn't have to be 281 00:15:19,440 --> 00:15:21,390 Ted Chapman: a dead straight line, but it just means that we'll 282 00:15:21,390 --> 00:15:23,520 Ted Chapman: cover the whole area between us. 283 00:15:26,400 --> 00:15:29,700 Cate Blanchett: This is when seed collecting gets competitive. I'm trying to 284 00:15:29,700 --> 00:15:31,080 Cate Blanchett: get a lot of heads. There we go. 285 00:15:33,480 --> 00:15:36,390 Isabel Negri: Don't be tempted to just collect the pretty ones. 286 00:15:36,480 --> 00:15:36,720 Ted Chapman: No. 287 00:15:36,720 --> 00:15:37,980 Isabel Negri: You want the ugly ones too. 288 00:15:39,240 --> 00:15:43,500 Cate Blanchett: No, that's a different one. Yeah, it hasn't got so 289 00:15:43,500 --> 00:15:49,500 Cate Blanchett: many heads on it. These ones are really rattley. I 290 00:15:49,500 --> 00:15:53,220 Cate Blanchett: may have felt slightly competitive, but ultimately, this is a 291 00:15:53,220 --> 00:15:54,150 Cate Blanchett: team sport. 292 00:15:54,270 --> 00:15:55,020 Ted Chapman: You've actually done it. 293 00:15:55,560 --> 00:15:55,561 Cate Blanchett: Have I? 294 00:15:55,561 --> 00:15:56,310 Ted Chapman: How many have you got? 295 00:15:56,760 --> 00:15:58,470 Isabel Negri: I think I've got about 25. 296 00:15:58,740 --> 00:15:59,760 Ted Chapman: Okay. All right. 297 00:16:00,060 --> 00:16:01,560 Cate Blanchett: I think I've got about 13. 298 00:16:01,830 --> 00:16:02,130 Ted Chapman: Okay. 299 00:16:02,550 --> 00:16:03,330 Cate Blanchett: Do I get the job? 300 00:16:03,660 --> 00:16:03,840 Ted Chapman: Yeah. 301 00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:08,520 Cate Blanchett: The yellow rattle heads are scooped up into a bag, 302 00:16:08,700 --> 00:16:12,239 Cate Blanchett: carefully labeled and a specimen is pressed. This part of 303 00:16:12,240 --> 00:16:15,030 Cate Blanchett: the process is now complete. So, once we've collected the 304 00:16:15,030 --> 00:16:18,540 Cate Blanchett: seeds, what happens now? Where do we go? Where do 305 00:16:18,540 --> 00:16:19,950 Cate Blanchett: these little seeds travel? 306 00:16:19,950 --> 00:16:22,920 Ted Chapman: So, those seeds would be returned as quickly as possible 307 00:16:23,070 --> 00:16:26,340 Ted Chapman: to the drying room at the Millennium Seed Bank. And 308 00:16:26,340 --> 00:16:29,670 Ted Chapman: that's where they'll start their drying and can begin their 309 00:16:30,000 --> 00:16:33,000 Ted Chapman: journey through being cleaned and tested and ultimately banked. 310 00:16:34,590 --> 00:16:42,270 Cate Blanchett: Come on little seeds. Later, I'll be going inside the 311 00:16:42,270 --> 00:16:45,240 Cate Blanchett: MSB to see what happens to the seeds when they 312 00:16:45,240 --> 00:16:50,310 Cate Blanchett: arrive at Wakehurst. Collections like this are essential to the 313 00:16:50,310 --> 00:16:53,580 Cate Blanchett: work of the Millennium Seed Bank, but they're carried out 314 00:16:53,610 --> 00:16:57,390 Cate Blanchett: not just on its doorstep, but also in collaboration with 315 00:16:57,390 --> 00:17:01,980 Cate Blanchett: partner organisations all over the world. With a global network 316 00:17:01,980 --> 00:17:07,109 Cate Blanchett: across nearly 100 countries, the MSB works with experts to 317 00:17:07,109 --> 00:17:11,401 Cate Blanchett: help inform projects that will save biodiversity in myriad places. 318 00:17:11,401 --> 00:17:18,780 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: I am Nattanit Yiamthaisong. I am a PhD student in Chiang 319 00:17:18,780 --> 00:17:25,320 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: Mai University. I'm working with FORRU, which is Forest Restoration Research 320 00:17:25,320 --> 00:17:31,290 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: Unit or in Thai name we call, Nuay Wichai Fuenfu Pa. FORRU and 321 00:17:31,710 --> 00:17:36,270 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: MSB is like we are the partnership for collaboration around more 322 00:17:36,270 --> 00:17:41,460 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: than 25 years. FORRU do the research about the restoration 323 00:17:41,520 --> 00:17:45,960 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: and we collect the seeds for sent to the MSB and I 324 00:17:45,960 --> 00:17:49,650 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: am the small part in the team for collect the seeds to send 325 00:17:49,650 --> 00:17:50,190 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: it here. 326 00:17:50,790 --> 00:17:53,970 Cate Blanchett: Nattanit is spending three months at the MSB as part 327 00:17:53,970 --> 00:17:58,710 Cate Blanchett: of her PhD studying how varying temperatures influence seed germination. 328 00:17:59,040 --> 00:18:03,570 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: We want to know if the climate change or the global warming in the 329 00:18:03,570 --> 00:18:08,760 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: future, the temperature will increase is maybe effect with the seed 330 00:18:09,119 --> 00:18:14,310 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: and germination of the seed. We want to know if 331 00:18:14,310 --> 00:18:17,730 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: the temperature increases effect with the seed or not. For two species from Thailand 332 00:18:18,180 --> 00:18:22,109 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: in different temperature from five to 45 degrees Celsius. 333 00:18:22,530 --> 00:18:24,960 Cate Blanchett: She has come to the Millennium Seed Bank to access 334 00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:26,760 Cate Blanchett: equipment she doesn't have in Thailand. 335 00:18:27,240 --> 00:18:31,230 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: I would like to learn about everything here because everything 336 00:18:31,230 --> 00:18:34,230 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: is new thing for me. In Thailand, we have a 337 00:18:34,230 --> 00:18:39,300 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: lot of limitation because we don't have enough incubator, we 338 00:18:39,300 --> 00:18:42,750 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: don't have enough machine to handle with the seed. Then I have 339 00:18:42,750 --> 00:18:46,800 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: to come here to use the facility, use the machine 340 00:18:46,800 --> 00:18:52,500 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: here. It's like a x- ray machine, aspirator or the incubator 341 00:18:52,619 --> 00:18:56,100 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: that I have to germinate the seed. After I finished 342 00:18:56,160 --> 00:19:00,869 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: the germination here, I have to analyze it in Thailand. 343 00:19:01,619 --> 00:19:05,850 Cate Blanchett: Nattanit's research allows us to understand how different seed species 344 00:19:05,970 --> 00:19:10,440 Cate Blanchett: respond to shifting temperatures. Knowledge that could guide us in 345 00:19:10,440 --> 00:19:14,730 Cate Blanchett: choosing the right seeds to use for future restoration. Her 346 00:19:14,730 --> 00:19:18,000 Cate Blanchett: work was made possible by an MSB project called the 347 00:19:18,000 --> 00:19:22,590 Cate Blanchett: Western Global Tree Seed Bank. Nattanit says that their funding 348 00:19:22,619 --> 00:19:25,680 Cate Blanchett: has inspired and opened new doors for her career. 349 00:19:26,010 --> 00:19:29,430 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: The scholarship or the fund for the student is so 350 00:19:29,430 --> 00:19:32,820 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: good for Thai student or every student who do the 351 00:19:32,820 --> 00:19:39,000 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: research for approve the research and for learn the new things. And 352 00:19:39,060 --> 00:19:43,980 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: everyone here is so nice. I like everything here. And the 353 00:19:44,220 --> 00:19:49,260 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: machine is so good, it's so new. I think the 354 00:19:49,260 --> 00:19:54,210 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: MSB and the Seed Bank is like a treasure in the future for everyone. It's like a 355 00:19:54,210 --> 00:19:58,470 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: hope for everyone in the future, because we don't know what 356 00:19:58,470 --> 00:20:02,730 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: happened in the future, right? If we have the result 357 00:20:03,240 --> 00:20:05,730 Nattanit Yiamthaisong: in my hand, we can do anything in the future. 358 00:20:06,510 --> 00:20:11,010 Cate Blanchett: Once collected, the seeds must be carefully processed to ensure 359 00:20:11,010 --> 00:20:14,609 Cate Blanchett: that they survive in the seed bank so that researchers 360 00:20:14,609 --> 00:20:17,790 Cate Blanchett: both here at Wakehurst and around the world can use them 361 00:20:17,790 --> 00:20:21,990 Cate Blanchett: for study or habitat restoration. It's a meticulous and time- 362 00:20:21,990 --> 00:20:27,869 Cate Blanchett: consuming process. So, not many people get to do this. 363 00:20:27,869 --> 00:20:31,290 Cate Blanchett: I've been invited inside the lab in the Millennium Seed 364 00:20:31,290 --> 00:20:33,930 Cate Blanchett: Bank to get a better understanding of how the seeds 365 00:20:33,960 --> 00:20:38,250 Cate Blanchett: are actually banked. And showing me around is seed curator, 366 00:20:39,030 --> 00:20:40,260 Cate Blanchett: Sian McCabe. Hello, Sian. 367 00:20:40,350 --> 00:20:40,350 Sian McCabe: Hi, nice to meet you. 368 00:20:40,350 --> 00:20:45,179 Cate Blanchett: Hi. Hey, hey. Can you explain what are we going 369 00:20:45,180 --> 00:20:48,210 Cate Blanchett: to do today? Oh, is that to clean my feet? 370 00:20:48,210 --> 00:20:50,250 Sian McCabe: Yeah, yeah. Just to make sure you're not bringing any- 371 00:20:50,250 --> 00:20:50,399 Cate Blanchett: There we go. 372 00:20:50,399 --> 00:20:50,761 Sian McCabe: ... outdoor. 373 00:20:50,761 --> 00:20:58,200 Cate Blanchett: Everything's nice and squeaky clean. Biosecurity is important at the MSB. So, 374 00:20:58,200 --> 00:21:00,180 Cate Blanchett: I slip on a lab coat. Very official. 375 00:21:00,570 --> 00:21:05,129 Sian McCabe: This is where the magic happens. We've stepped into the cleaning 376 00:21:05,130 --> 00:21:09,270 Sian McCabe: lab, the space where every single seed is carefully freed 377 00:21:09,270 --> 00:21:12,359 Sian McCabe: from dust and debris and seeds that are empty or 378 00:21:12,359 --> 00:21:16,290 Sian McCabe: infested are removed. But before they're cleaned, there's a very 379 00:21:16,290 --> 00:21:17,730 Sian McCabe: important stop they have to make. 380 00:21:18,090 --> 00:21:20,400 Cate Blanchett: So, this looks like a freezer, but it's more like 381 00:21:20,400 --> 00:21:21,060 Cate Blanchett: a sauna. 382 00:21:21,420 --> 00:21:27,900 Sian McCabe: So, it's 18 degrees Celsius and 15% relative humidity. And 383 00:21:27,900 --> 00:21:32,460 Sian McCabe: this is really important because with every 1% a seed 384 00:21:32,460 --> 00:21:36,990 Sian McCabe: is dried, it can double the lifespan of the seed. 385 00:21:37,200 --> 00:21:39,480 Cate Blanchett: And then what do you do with say, a recalcitrant 386 00:21:39,480 --> 00:21:42,359 Cate Blanchett: seed? So, the seeds that won't withstand the drying process. 387 00:21:42,359 --> 00:21:47,369 Sian McCabe: Yep. So, we have other different humidity rooms. So, this 388 00:21:47,369 --> 00:21:49,350 Sian McCabe: one is at 70%, so we... 389 00:21:49,350 --> 00:21:49,350 Cate Blanchett: Quite a big difference humidity. 390 00:21:49,351 --> 00:21:50,940 Sian McCabe: So, yeah. 391 00:21:51,510 --> 00:21:54,149 Cate Blanchett: Sian told me that 90% of the seeds collected are 392 00:21:54,150 --> 00:21:58,020 Cate Blanchett: what we call orthodox. And those orthodox seeds can withstand 393 00:21:58,080 --> 00:22:03,540 Cate Blanchett: normal drying and freezing processes. The remaining 10% can't. 394 00:22:04,080 --> 00:22:06,389 Sian McCabe: We know not to put them into the dry room 395 00:22:06,780 --> 00:22:07,619 Sian McCabe: and to treat them regarding... 396 00:22:07,619 --> 00:22:10,469 Cate Blanchett: And what's an example of a non- orthodox seed like that? 397 00:22:11,220 --> 00:22:14,580 Sian McCabe: They tend to be food, so quite yummy. So, we've 398 00:22:14,580 --> 00:22:19,320 Sian McCabe: got avocado and I wouldn't recommend eating it, but acorns 399 00:22:19,470 --> 00:22:23,730 Sian McCabe: are recalcitrant. So, they're just a few examples. So, there's 400 00:22:23,730 --> 00:22:23,850 Sian McCabe: the door. 401 00:22:23,850 --> 00:22:23,851 Cate Blanchett: Okay. 402 00:22:23,851 --> 00:22:27,780 Sian McCabe: And this is the airlock area. 403 00:22:28,320 --> 00:22:31,109 Cate Blanchett: Ooh. Through double airlock doors, we move into a cool 404 00:22:31,320 --> 00:22:35,490 Cate Blanchett: unassuming room with every corner stacked and packed with crates. 405 00:22:37,170 --> 00:22:39,720 Sian McCabe: So, we need to make sure that door's shut, that's it, 406 00:22:39,720 --> 00:22:42,450 Sian McCabe: before opening this one to protect our seeds. 407 00:22:42,450 --> 00:22:42,780 Cate Blanchett: Like Star Wars. 408 00:22:43,170 --> 00:22:43,230 Sian McCabe: Yeah, if you just push it. 409 00:22:44,010 --> 00:22:48,090 Cate Blanchett: It resembles a supermarket store room. Yet here, I'm surrounded 410 00:22:48,090 --> 00:22:51,810 Cate Blanchett: by seeds from all over the world. There's lots of 411 00:22:51,810 --> 00:22:56,250 Cate Blanchett: plastic storage trays and there's some seeds in envelopes of 412 00:22:56,250 --> 00:23:00,690 Cate Blanchett: South Africa, Sierra Leone, Georgia, Madagascar, they're from all over. 413 00:23:01,380 --> 00:23:05,609 Cate Blanchett: Greece, Ghana, Mozambique. Goodness. 414 00:23:05,640 --> 00:23:08,640 Sian McCabe: Yeah, all these crates to the right are ready to 415 00:23:08,640 --> 00:23:09,960 Sian McCabe: clean and to process. 416 00:23:09,960 --> 00:23:12,900 Cate Blanchett: Given that you've got so many seeds, I mean they 417 00:23:12,900 --> 00:23:15,689 Cate Blanchett: all obviously need to drive for different amounts of time. 418 00:23:15,960 --> 00:23:17,609 Cate Blanchett: That's quite a complicated thing to matter. 419 00:23:17,609 --> 00:23:22,320 Sian McCabe: Yeah. Yeah, we have species that are super short- lived, 420 00:23:22,320 --> 00:23:26,369 Sian McCabe: so they're outlined at the beginning. And with some seeds, 421 00:23:26,369 --> 00:23:29,100 Sian McCabe: like with the orchid seeds, we come in, we have to process within 422 00:23:29,100 --> 00:23:33,510 Sian McCabe: two weeks to keep the seeds alive and well. But 423 00:23:33,510 --> 00:23:38,820 Sian McCabe: with most orthodox non- short lived seeds, six months seems 424 00:23:38,820 --> 00:23:41,280 Sian McCabe: because we have really big seeds that will take longer 425 00:23:41,280 --> 00:23:45,510 Sian McCabe: to drive. So, the default position of these collections are 426 00:23:45,510 --> 00:23:47,879 Sian McCabe: in the dry room. And when we get out to 427 00:23:47,880 --> 00:23:51,629 Sian McCabe: process them and after each process, they'll go back here 428 00:23:51,630 --> 00:23:52,530 Sian McCabe: to re- dry. 429 00:23:52,950 --> 00:23:56,640 Cate Blanchett: Once the seeds are fully dried, the next step is 430 00:23:56,640 --> 00:24:02,070 Cate Blanchett: to clean them. Oh, there's a rack of metal. They 431 00:24:02,070 --> 00:24:03,869 Cate Blanchett: look like film canisters, but they're not. 432 00:24:04,470 --> 00:24:04,680 Sian McCabe: Yeah. 433 00:24:04,680 --> 00:24:05,580 Cate Blanchett: What goes on here. 434 00:24:05,640 --> 00:24:09,090 Sian McCabe: So, these are sieves. So, similar to what you'd have 435 00:24:09,090 --> 00:24:13,320 Sian McCabe: in your kitchen, but they're all different pore sizes. So, 436 00:24:13,740 --> 00:24:16,290 Sian McCabe: we go from the small this end. So, you can 437 00:24:16,290 --> 00:24:20,130 Sian McCabe: see here that it's a very fine mesh. 438 00:24:20,130 --> 00:24:22,560 Cate Blanchett: So, that's for something like dust particle seeds like the 439 00:24:22,560 --> 00:24:23,220 Cate Blanchett: orchid I imagine? 440 00:24:23,220 --> 00:24:24,300 Sian McCabe: Yeah, exactly. 441 00:24:24,359 --> 00:24:27,000 Cate Blanchett: Wow, I can't imagine how... it feels so solid. How 442 00:24:27,000 --> 00:24:29,310 Cate Blanchett: could anything go through there? 443 00:24:29,340 --> 00:24:34,050 Sian McCabe: Yeah, it's sometimes to save the seeds above it and 444 00:24:34,050 --> 00:24:37,410 Sian McCabe: then the dust falls behind. And then we have the larger 445 00:24:37,410 --> 00:24:40,350 Sian McCabe: ones at this end. This is for the big tree seeds, 446 00:24:40,770 --> 00:24:43,350 Sian McCabe: and this is what we use to get most of 447 00:24:43,350 --> 00:24:47,430 Sian McCabe: the bulk from the collection to separate the seeds and the debris. 448 00:24:47,940 --> 00:24:51,570 Cate Blanchett: There's a more high- tech solution too. This looks like 449 00:24:51,570 --> 00:24:52,740 Cate Blanchett: something in a fun arcade. 450 00:24:52,890 --> 00:24:58,530 Sian McCabe: This machine is called an aspirator, and that uses airflow 451 00:24:58,530 --> 00:25:01,949 Sian McCabe: to separate the light parts of the collection to the 452 00:25:01,950 --> 00:25:02,281 Sian McCabe: heavy part. 453 00:25:02,281 --> 00:25:04,740 Cate Blanchett: Looks like you put a coin in and it will travel all the 454 00:25:04,740 --> 00:25:08,580 Cate Blanchett: way along. There's a almost like a big slide. There's 455 00:25:08,580 --> 00:25:12,180 Cate Blanchett: an opening in the top, goes into a slot, then 456 00:25:12,180 --> 00:25:15,899 Cate Blanchett: it goes along a strange convoluted journey bit. It's a 457 00:25:15,900 --> 00:25:20,369 Cate Blanchett: bit like a pinball machine. Is that to shake things 458 00:25:20,369 --> 00:25:21,600 Cate Blanchett: off the seed or... 459 00:25:21,600 --> 00:25:24,450 Sian McCabe: Yeah. So, here's the chute. So, it's a bit like 460 00:25:24,450 --> 00:25:28,649 Sian McCabe: a funnel. We'll just turn it down so the seeds 461 00:25:28,650 --> 00:25:29,910 Sian McCabe: don't escape. 462 00:25:29,910 --> 00:25:34,230 Cate Blanchett: So, you're popping the seeds in the top, like peppercorns. 463 00:25:34,230 --> 00:25:38,280 Sian McCabe: There we go. So, in theory, the heavy parts are the 464 00:25:38,310 --> 00:25:41,940 Sian McCabe: good full seeds and the light parts are the debris 465 00:25:42,210 --> 00:25:45,900 Sian McCabe: and the empty seeds. So, the light empty seeds get 466 00:25:45,900 --> 00:25:48,420 Sian McCabe: exposed to the airflow and fly over to the right- 467 00:25:48,450 --> 00:25:49,380 Sian McCabe: hand side. 468 00:25:49,470 --> 00:25:50,520 Cate Blanchett: Down the pinball machine sheet. 469 00:25:50,520 --> 00:25:53,490 Sian McCabe: Yeah. And then the heavy seeds fall down. 470 00:25:53,580 --> 00:25:54,600 Cate Blanchett: And that's done with air. 471 00:25:54,660 --> 00:25:58,770 Sian McCabe: So, this button, you turn right to vary the vibrations 472 00:25:58,770 --> 00:26:02,159 Sian McCabe: of the plate to move the seeds along. 473 00:26:02,790 --> 00:26:05,220 Cate Blanchett: So, they're bouncing off the side of that chute and 474 00:26:05,220 --> 00:26:07,710 Cate Blanchett: then bouncing off it, that's shaking. 475 00:26:07,710 --> 00:26:11,040 Sian McCabe: You can see some bits of debris flying over onto 476 00:26:11,040 --> 00:26:11,161 Sian McCabe: the right-hand. 477 00:26:11,161 --> 00:26:15,480 Cate Blanchett: I see the air takes the light debris up and down. 478 00:26:16,380 --> 00:26:19,409 Sian McCabe: So, we've got manual sieving, and this is a more high- 479 00:26:19,410 --> 00:26:24,240 Sian McCabe: tech version. And then the very low- tech version is 480 00:26:24,240 --> 00:26:26,580 Sian McCabe: we have a rubber mat and a rubber glove. 481 00:26:26,760 --> 00:26:29,670 Cate Blanchett: Once the seeds have been cleaned, they are x- rayed 482 00:26:29,820 --> 00:26:33,359 Cate Blanchett: to assess their quality. I hadn't really thought before that 483 00:26:33,359 --> 00:26:35,550 Cate Blanchett: a seed could actually be x- rayed. 484 00:26:36,330 --> 00:26:39,630 Sian McCabe: After cleaning, it's really good to see inside of the seed 485 00:26:40,080 --> 00:26:43,470 Sian McCabe: to see whether there's still any empty seeds or invested 486 00:26:43,470 --> 00:26:46,619 Sian McCabe: seeds. As you can see in this image, we have 487 00:26:46,619 --> 00:26:51,030 Sian McCabe: a few different seeds. So, here, you can see the 488 00:26:51,030 --> 00:26:55,169 Sian McCabe: embryo. So, this is the endosperm surrounding the seed. And 489 00:26:55,170 --> 00:26:55,320 Sian McCabe: this is... 490 00:26:55,710 --> 00:26:56,401 Cate Blanchett: Tiny little thing. 491 00:26:56,401 --> 00:27:00,330 Sian McCabe: This is what's going to hopefully turn it into a plant. 492 00:27:00,690 --> 00:27:05,100 Sian McCabe: So, we have some really bright white images of seeds, 493 00:27:05,100 --> 00:27:09,000 Sian McCabe: which means that it's a solid, lovely, full content. But 494 00:27:09,000 --> 00:27:10,680 Sian McCabe: here, can you see... 495 00:27:10,680 --> 00:27:12,210 Cate Blanchett: It's like a dark shadow in the middle 496 00:27:12,390 --> 00:27:13,200 Sian McCabe: It's a maggot. 497 00:27:14,010 --> 00:27:17,010 Cate Blanchett: Oh. It's a maggot? 498 00:27:17,040 --> 00:27:17,580 Sian McCabe: Yes. 499 00:27:18,150 --> 00:27:19,980 Cate Blanchett: You've got three maggots in that batch? 500 00:27:20,190 --> 00:27:25,080 Sian McCabe: Yep, but the problem with maggots is when it comes 501 00:27:25,080 --> 00:27:28,738 Sian McCabe: to cleaning, if you think back to the aspirator that 502 00:27:28,739 --> 00:27:33,119 Sian McCabe: it's all based on weight difference. So, we can't necessarily 503 00:27:33,119 --> 00:27:37,800 Sian McCabe: clean out this collection because the weight of a seed with 504 00:27:37,800 --> 00:27:41,550 Sian McCabe: a maggot in weighs a similar amount to a full 505 00:27:41,550 --> 00:27:45,449 Sian McCabe: seed. So, we try our best, but the maggots are 506 00:27:45,450 --> 00:27:49,290 Sian McCabe: usually not with us after six months of drying. 507 00:27:50,670 --> 00:27:53,760 Cate Blanchett: After being x- rayed, the seeds are counted and then 508 00:27:53,760 --> 00:27:59,730 Cate Blanchett: taken underground to the vaults, the seed bank itself. Downstairs? 509 00:27:59,730 --> 00:27:59,880 Sian McCabe: Yes. 510 00:28:00,270 --> 00:28:03,869 Cate Blanchett: Sian leads me there next, descending a steep metal spiral 511 00:28:03,869 --> 00:28:07,500 Cate Blanchett: staircase to arrive at the heart of the building concealed 512 00:28:07,500 --> 00:28:12,179 Cate Blanchett: behind a thick metal door. So, this is the door 513 00:28:12,240 --> 00:28:13,110 Cate Blanchett: of the vault. 514 00:28:13,140 --> 00:28:13,141 Sian McCabe: This is the door of... 515 00:28:13,141 --> 00:28:16,410 Cate Blanchett: And that is the longest key I've ever seen in my life. 516 00:28:16,410 --> 00:28:18,960 Sian McCabe: Say about 10, 15 centimeters long. 517 00:28:20,760 --> 00:28:20,941 Cate Blanchett: I would say it is. 518 00:28:20,941 --> 00:28:30,090 Sian McCabe: So, we just need to open the very heavy door. Welcome 519 00:28:30,090 --> 00:28:35,310 Sian McCabe: in. This is actually the most biodiverse place in the world. 520 00:28:36,000 --> 00:28:36,930 Cate Blanchett: In this very room? 521 00:28:37,170 --> 00:28:39,810 Sian McCabe: Yeah, because we have so many species in. 522 00:28:39,900 --> 00:28:42,270 Cate Blanchett: So, are these technically called the vaults? 523 00:28:42,510 --> 00:28:45,570 Sian McCabe: Yeah, these are the vaults where their seeds are kept 524 00:28:45,570 --> 00:28:46,560 Sian McCabe: at minus 20. 525 00:28:49,560 --> 00:28:53,820 Cate Blanchett: Oh my goodness. It is absolutely freezing in here. Arctic. 526 00:28:55,440 --> 00:28:59,610 Cate Blanchett: It feels so alien. Almost like an old- fashioned library. 527 00:29:00,360 --> 00:29:02,850 Cate Blanchett: You're expecting library cards to be pulled out from these 528 00:29:03,510 --> 00:29:07,650 Cate Blanchett: metal trays. But along the right- hand side from meters 529 00:29:07,650 --> 00:29:09,900 Cate Blanchett: and meters and meters are a whole lot of preserving 530 00:29:09,900 --> 00:29:12,719 Cate Blanchett: jars, which look like the ones that I've got at 531 00:29:12,720 --> 00:29:13,890 Cate Blanchett: home in my pantry. 532 00:29:13,920 --> 00:29:17,820 Sian McCabe: Yeah. So, the pickling jars are actually the best glass 533 00:29:17,820 --> 00:29:18,780 Sian McCabe: jars that we have. 534 00:29:18,780 --> 00:29:22,890 Cate Blanchett: And on the right- hand side, ooh, it's really icy. 535 00:29:23,280 --> 00:29:25,980 Cate Blanchett: On this side here, they almost look like tiny little 536 00:29:25,980 --> 00:29:27,630 Cate Blanchett: medicine or pill bottles. 537 00:29:27,900 --> 00:29:28,200 Sian McCabe: Yeah. 538 00:29:28,680 --> 00:29:32,250 Cate Blanchett: And so, some seeds are stored in the preserving jars 539 00:29:32,250 --> 00:29:32,880 Cate Blanchett: and some? 540 00:29:33,090 --> 00:29:35,670 Sian McCabe: It all depends on the size of the collection. I 541 00:29:35,670 --> 00:29:37,800 Sian McCabe: can show you some examples in the warmer. 542 00:29:38,160 --> 00:29:39,330 Cate Blanchett: So, that's minus 20? 543 00:29:39,330 --> 00:29:40,200 Sian McCabe: Yeah, minus 20. 544 00:29:40,200 --> 00:29:43,560 Cate Blanchett: I've been cold dipping, but really that is quite cold. 545 00:29:43,950 --> 00:29:45,690 Cate Blanchett: And how many times a day do you go in there? 546 00:29:45,930 --> 00:29:48,000 Sian McCabe: Probably once or twice a week, but we had a 547 00:29:48,000 --> 00:29:51,870 Sian McCabe: fluffy hat with ears on to protect us, two gloves 548 00:29:51,870 --> 00:29:55,740 Sian McCabe: and a really big coat that makes me look 10 549 00:29:55,740 --> 00:29:56,670 Sian McCabe: times the size. 550 00:29:58,200 --> 00:30:02,280 Cate Blanchett: But not all the seeds remain here locked away indefinitely. 551 00:30:02,490 --> 00:30:05,820 Sian McCabe: When our seeds are ready to bank, we separate them 552 00:30:05,820 --> 00:30:10,440 Sian McCabe: into two parts. So, we have an active part. That's 553 00:30:10,440 --> 00:30:15,360 Sian McCabe: the parts that gets used for germination testing and for 554 00:30:15,360 --> 00:30:19,500 Sian McCabe: research and for restoration. And then the other part, which 555 00:30:19,500 --> 00:30:23,430 Sian McCabe: is the base just gets left there because we're not 556 00:30:23,430 --> 00:30:26,340 Sian McCabe: sure. And taking seeds in and out of the bank 557 00:30:26,460 --> 00:30:30,570 Sian McCabe: too often, we don't want to compromise the quality of a 558 00:30:30,660 --> 00:30:34,890 Sian McCabe: collection. So, these are all glass. So, it's really nice 559 00:30:34,890 --> 00:30:38,880 Sian McCabe: to see the seeds, but we're moving more onto these 560 00:30:39,960 --> 00:30:41,100 Sian McCabe: foil bags. 561 00:30:41,550 --> 00:30:42,600 Cate Blanchett: Taking up less space. 562 00:30:42,600 --> 00:30:45,510 Sian McCabe: And if you drop them accidentally, they don't break. 563 00:30:47,340 --> 00:30:49,200 Cate Blanchett: But these new bags that you've got, look a little 564 00:30:49,200 --> 00:30:53,280 Cate Blanchett: bit like my daughter got some astronaut's ice cream. 565 00:30:53,340 --> 00:30:53,940 Sian McCabe: Oh, yeah. 566 00:30:53,940 --> 00:30:54,120 Cate Blanchett: That was look like it came into one of those pancakes. 567 00:30:56,220 --> 00:30:59,370 Sian McCabe: Yeah, this is exactly it. So, it's a thick foil 568 00:30:59,370 --> 00:31:02,340 Sian McCabe: sachet that we heat seal. So, yeah, exactly what they 569 00:31:02,340 --> 00:31:03,300 Sian McCabe: have in space. 570 00:31:04,860 --> 00:31:07,800 Cate Blanchett: Storing the seeds is one thing, but the team here 571 00:31:07,800 --> 00:31:10,229 Cate Blanchett: must also ensure that they can be brought back to 572 00:31:10,230 --> 00:31:14,100 Cate Blanchett: life revived as fully fledged plants when needed. Just as 573 00:31:14,100 --> 00:31:16,440 Cate Blanchett: we heard in episode one, after the fires in South 574 00:31:16,440 --> 00:31:21,510 Cate Blanchett: Australia, this process begins just a few months after the 575 00:31:21,510 --> 00:31:24,840 Cate Blanchett: seeds are first banked and then is repeated at 5- 576 00:31:24,840 --> 00:31:29,910 Cate Blanchett: or 10- year intervals. It is a meticulous and monumental 577 00:31:29,910 --> 00:31:30,510 Cate Blanchett: task. 578 00:31:31,290 --> 00:31:32,250 Sian McCabe: You ready for the heat? 579 00:31:34,320 --> 00:31:35,010 Cate Blanchett: Oh, and here we are. 580 00:31:36,690 --> 00:31:39,150 Sian McCabe: So, this is our germination lab. 581 00:31:44,430 --> 00:31:49,380 Cate Blanchett: Oh, wow. The smell is really, it's very strong, very earthy. 582 00:31:50,040 --> 00:31:52,140 Cate Blanchett: You can tell things are growing in here. You can really smell 583 00:31:52,140 --> 00:31:59,130 Cate Blanchett: the soil. These ones are growing, the clappers. Those ones are massive. They almost look like 584 00:31:59,190 --> 00:32:02,460 Cate Blanchett: cockroaches, and those ones almost look like a moldy chocolate. 585 00:32:04,530 --> 00:32:07,170 Cate Blanchett: They're very strange and the shape of them is really 586 00:32:07,170 --> 00:32:10,230 Cate Blanchett: varied because normally, you think about a seed as looking uniform. 587 00:32:10,320 --> 00:32:13,680 Sian McCabe: Yeah, a bit like humans. Even though we are the same 588 00:32:13,680 --> 00:32:15,510 Sian McCabe: species, we all look a bit different, don't we? 589 00:32:15,510 --> 00:32:15,630 Cate Blanchett: Really? 590 00:32:17,310 --> 00:32:17,880 Sian McCabe: So, yeah. 591 00:32:20,340 --> 00:32:25,260 Cate Blanchett: We're surrounded by Petri dishes filled with germinating seeds. Tiny 592 00:32:25,290 --> 00:32:29,880 Cate Blanchett: emerging plants of every shape and size. Some are gnarled, 593 00:32:29,880 --> 00:32:34,590 Cate Blanchett: like potato roots, others almost otherworldly like something from science 594 00:32:34,590 --> 00:32:40,560 Cate Blanchett: fiction. The lab simulates day and night, 12 hours of 595 00:32:40,560 --> 00:32:45,090 Cate Blanchett: UV light followed by 12 hours of darkness. What's this 596 00:32:45,090 --> 00:32:45,720 Cate Blanchett: one here? 597 00:32:46,500 --> 00:32:52,080 Sian McCabe: So, this is a goat willow from Scotland. And as 598 00:32:52,080 --> 00:32:54,750 Sian McCabe: you can see, it's got really good germination. So, you 599 00:32:54,750 --> 00:32:57,510 Sian McCabe: can see the part that's coming out from the seed 600 00:32:57,510 --> 00:33:00,630 Sian McCabe: is what we call a radical. And the cotyledons, which 601 00:33:00,660 --> 00:33:03,690 Sian McCabe: are the first leads coming out. And this is really 602 00:33:03,690 --> 00:33:09,210 Sian McCabe: good because Salix, the goat willow, it's supposed to be 603 00:33:09,210 --> 00:33:12,510 Sian McCabe: super short- lived, but this has been in our bank 604 00:33:12,510 --> 00:33:17,370 Sian McCabe: since 2019. So, this is five years after checking to 605 00:33:17,370 --> 00:33:18,031 Sian McCabe: check it's still alive- 606 00:33:18,031 --> 00:33:18,032 Cate Blanchett: It's still doing. 607 00:33:18,032 --> 00:33:19,590 Sian McCabe: ... and it's still alive. 608 00:33:20,100 --> 00:33:22,260 Cate Blanchett: And so, now that all of these little goat willows 609 00:33:22,260 --> 00:33:25,110 Cate Blanchett: have germinated, will any of those get planted out? 610 00:33:26,340 --> 00:33:30,690 Sian McCabe: Only if they're needed for identification purposes or restoration purposes. 611 00:33:31,680 --> 00:33:39,930 Cate Blanchett: Thank you. Thanks so much. I've had the privilege of going inside 612 00:33:39,930 --> 00:33:43,440 Cate Blanchett: the working spaces of the MSB and of witnessing the seed's 613 00:33:43,440 --> 00:33:47,640 Cate Blanchett: journey from collection to germination. But this is not a 614 00:33:47,640 --> 00:33:52,020 Cate Blanchett: world hidden away. Anyone visiting Wakehurst can step into the 615 00:33:52,020 --> 00:33:54,780 Cate Blanchett: atrium here at the Millennium Seed Bank, peer into the 616 00:33:54,780 --> 00:33:58,950 Cate Blanchett: labs, and even look down at the vault door. What 617 00:33:58,950 --> 00:34:04,140 Cate Blanchett: really strikes me is how these tiny, fragile beginnings hold 618 00:34:04,140 --> 00:34:09,239 Cate Blanchett: such extraordinary promise. I mean, each sprouting seed is a 619 00:34:09,239 --> 00:34:13,830 Cate Blanchett: quiet guardian of our future, a small, but vital piece 620 00:34:13,830 --> 00:34:18,719 Cate Blanchett: of the puzzle protecting our planet. Join me next time 621 00:34:18,840 --> 00:34:21,989 Cate Blanchett: as we look forward to the future these seeds may 622 00:34:21,989 --> 00:34:25,770 Cate Blanchett: protect to the vision driving the final chapter of our 623 00:34:25,770 --> 00:34:31,080 Cate Blanchett: story and the innovative science behind it. This is Unearthed: 624 00:34:31,650 --> 00:34:36,330 Cate Blanchett: The need for seeds. Please follow us wherever you find 625 00:34:36,330 --> 00:34:39,989 Cate Blanchett: your podcasts. And hey, leave us a review so others 626 00:34:39,989 --> 00:34:42,840 Cate Blanchett: can find us too. And I invite you to join 627 00:34:42,840 --> 00:34:45,660 Cate Blanchett: me in supporting the vital work of the Millennium Seed 628 00:34:45,660 --> 00:34:48,719 Cate Blanchett: Bank by making a donation today. You can just click 629 00:34:48,719 --> 00:34:52,020 Cate Blanchett: the link in the episode description to learn more. Until 630 00:34:52,020 --> 00:34:53,730 Cate Blanchett: next time, thanks for listening.