Botanic

Garden
Meise
Annual report
2016
Botanic
Garden
Meise
Annual report
2016
Content

Discovering and recording biodiversity

6 – 12

Understanding ecosystems
13 – 16

Safeguarding plant life

17 – 21

Bringing our heritage to life

22 – 25

(Re-)connecting plants and people

26 – 29

Inspiring and informing

30 – 38

Realising state-of-the-art
visitor and research infrastructure
39 – 49

Organisation
50 – 54

Facts and figures

55 – 77

In response to an increasingly globalised and changing
world, the roles of botanic gardens have diversified, this is
especially true for Botanic Garden Meise. National and in-
ternational cooperation is at the forefront of our Garden’s
activities helping to address issues caused by human ac-
tivities that place mounting pressures on plant life. Often,
people are unaware of these threats because of the phe-
nomenon ‘plant blindness’, a term first introduced in 1998 by
Wandersee & Schussler who broadly defined it as: “the ina-
bility to see or notice the plants in one's own environment, leading to
the inability to recognize the importance of plants in the biosphere
and in human affairs”. Plant blindness also comprises an “in-
ability to appreciate the aesthetic and unique biological features”
of plants and “the misguided, anthropocentric ranking of plants
as inferior to animals, leading to the erroneous conclusion that they
are unworthy of human consideration”.
In industrialised nations, plants often tend to be lost
in the background. Fortunately, nature conservationists,
biologists and botanists have been aware, for many dec-
ades, of the threats posed to plants and their environments
and have taken action. The Botanical Congress in St Louis,
USA (1999) recognised plant conservation as an urgent
international priority. This was followed by The Gran Ca-
naria Declaration (2000) and recognition that a specific
strategy for plant conservation was needed by the Con-
vention on Biological Diversity via the Conference of the
Parties (COP). Botanic Gardens Conservation International
(BGCI) and its General Secretary at that time, Peter Wyse-
Jackson, were instrumental in forging the Global Strategy
for Plant Conservation (GSPC). Over many international
congresses estimated outcomes were refined and 16 targets
set. These were legally adopted in 2002 by Belgium and all
other signatory nations to the CBD. Many international
organisations took responsibility, these included: - Interna-
tional Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Inter-
national Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) the Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO), World Wide Fund for
Nature (WWF), United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and BGCI. These organ-
isations now act as ‘lead’ partners for each of the adopted
targets. ‘Target 8: 60% of threatened plant species in accessible ex
situ collections, preferably in the country of origin, and 10% of them
in recovery and restoration programmes’ is in part led by BGCI.
Foreword
This Target has particular relevance to botanic gardens.
Consequently, an international stakeholder consultation
meeting was hosted by Botanic Garden Meise at the Bou-
chout Castle in 2003. Its aim to evaluate the scope of activi-
ties and implications for achieving that target by applying
the ecosystem approach. At the same meeting, sub-targets,
milestones, baseline data and a series of indicators for mon-
itoring progress towards achieving Target 8 were devel-
oped. The GSPC was evaluated and reviewed with updated
targets for the period 2011-2020. The new aim for Target 8
now reads: ‘At least 75 per cent of threatened plant species in ex
situ collections, preferably in the country of origin, and at least 20
per cent available for recovery and restoration programmes’.
Currently, 196 countries hold the GSPC as a legally
binding document. Each country has a ‘clearinghouse’
mechanism to help it work towards the GSPC. For Bel-
gium, Botanic Garden Meise is this entity, represented by
its CEO, Dr Steven Dessein.
This Annual Report of Botanic Garden Meise has been
structured alongside the 16 targets of the GSPC. This al-
lows Belgian politicians and decision makers with an easy to
follow document on annual progress and facilitates its use
internationally. Within our Garden the Strategy has been
influential in focusing and developing programmes and ac-
tivities. Through direct adoption of the Strategy, work on
education and with organisations with strong in situ conser-
vation links have been pivotal.
As President of the Board of Directors, I express the
positive feelings from the Board with respect to the Gar-
dens activities and express the hope that the forthcoming
major developments enable our Garden to tackle the cur-
rent and future challenges that beset our planet.
Jan Rammeloo
President of Board of Directors

Garden tourism is on the rise, with 250 million annual
visitors to botanical gardens and arboreta worldwide. With
a doubling of the number of ‘one-time’ visitors, Botanic
Garden Meise has followed this trend over the past decade
and has become a major Belgian tourist attraction. In 2016
we welcomed nearly 132,000 visitors, a new record. We be-
lieve this has been driven by holding numerous events, in-
cluding activities to celebrate the different seasons. Com-
pared to other European gardens, however, the number of
visitors remains relatively low. Therefore, in 2016 an ambi-
tious business plan 'Botanic Garden 2.0’ was drafted with
the aim of doubling the number of visitors to 250,000 by
2024. Tourism Flanders will support the plan in the coming
years with a grant of €2.9 million. Obtaining this grant was
an important milestone for our Garden.
Our Garden’s success as a tourist attraction in 2016 was
complemented by important work from our scientists. In
total they described 68 new species. These included tiny
diatoms from Antarctic islands, edible Katangese mush-
rooms and endangered tree species from Gabon. In ad-
dition, the number of scientific contributions increased
further and the Garden was nationally and internationally
visible through participation in symposia, conferences and
expeditions.
May 31 was a highlight for the Garden - in the presence
of Minister Muyters the first herbarium specimen was dig-
itised as part of the project ‘Unlocking Digital Heritage
Collections’. At the end of the year, nearly 700,000 images
had been made; they will shortly appear on our new web-
site. Meanwhile, our gardeners made the necessary prepa-
rations to start planting the renovated glasshouses of the
Plant Palace in 2017.
The importance of our educational mission, our re-
search and scientific collections was also reflected in the
number of successful projects achieved in 2016. Apart from
Introduction
the grant for the previously mentioned tourism business
plan, we acquired ten external projects. These were collab-
orative initiatives with Flemish, national and international
institutes. There is increasing awareness of our scientists’
expertise and as a consequence we are undertaking more
consultancies.
The strategic direction for the investments in our Gar-
den is outlined in the ‘2015-2026 Master Plan’. This includes
new visitor centres at both entrances and a new greenhouse
complex. In addition to new builds, there are some aging
utilities (over 60 years) that have reached the end of their
usefulness. It will take several years before the entire infra-
structure of the Garden is fit-for-purpose. In 2016, the sani-
tation network and electricity supply were the first major
areas to be partly renovated and renewed.
The success of 2016 is the result of the entire Botanic
Garden Meise team. I therefore wish to thank all the staff,
guides, volunteers and members of the Scientific Council
and Executive Board for their enthusiasm, ideas and contin-
ued commitment.
I trust as a reader of this report you will appreciate our
many achievements of 2016 and I hope to welcome you
soon in our Garden, as a researcher, participant of a MICE
(Meetings, Incentives, Conferencing, and Exhibitions) ac-
tivity or visitor.
Steven Dessein
CEO
 Discovering
and recording
biodiversity
At present the total number of plant species on our
planet remains unknown. Many are yet to be discov-
ered, especially in the tropics and in certain groups like
fungi and algae, this represents a serious scientific defi-
cit. Since species are the fundamental building blocks
of ecosystems, knowing them is essential to our under-
standing of how our living planet works.

Discovering, describing, naming and classifying spe-

cies is at the core of our scientific research. Our taxon-
omists combine classic methods, such as morphology,
histology and anatomy with modern techniques includ-
ing scanning electron microscopy, digital imaging and
DNA barcoding. The result aims to be a globally ac-
cepted, stable and scientific ordering of all life forms
in a system that reflects their evolutionary origin. The
taxonomic data and identification tools, such as floras,
developed by our specialists are crucial for many other
fields of research and for commercial purposes.
 Ochrolechia kerguelensis Ertz & Kukwa, a new
New to science

The diversity of plants, algae and fungi on earth is tremendous.

sub-Antarctic lichen species.

Despite the flora of some countries being well known many have
species that still await discovery by scientists. Describing and
naming new species is a core business of the taxonomists at Bo-
tanic Garden Meise.

Photo Damien Ertz.

Our Garden’s researchers are specialists in the floras of parts
of Africa, South-East Asia and Antarctic islands, among other
places. In these areas they conduct in-depth studies in search of
< taxonomic novelties. In 2016, staff from our Garden published a
total of 68 species that were new to science.

The African genus Englerophytum (Sapotaceae) received five new

species from studies in Central Africa. One of them, Englerophy-
tum gigantifolium O. Lachenaud & L. Gaut., is known from a single
locality in Gabon, where its habitat is threatened by mining. A de-
cline in the extent and quality of its forest habitat, the number of
sub-populations and mature individuals is therefore expected. As
a result, E. gigantifolium’s preliminarily assessment using the cat-
egories and criteria of the International Union for Conservation of
Nature (IUCN) is Critically Endangered. To determine if this is a
true reflection of this species further field work is necessary to see
if this species also occurs in other localities.

In the era of DNA analyses, generic limits are a major issue for
many plant and fungal groups. Combining molecular evidence
with detailed morphological data leads to a better understand of
evolutionary relationship within plant families. For example, the
Poaceae or grass family, necessitated the transfer of ten species
from the genus Brachiaria to Urochloa as a result of this process.
Among them was the newly named Urochloa turbinata (Van der
Veken) Sosef and U. wittei (Robyns) Sosef, both endemic of Ka-
Englerophytum gigantifolium O. Lachenaud & L. Gaut.,

tanga Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Phylogenetic studies conducted at Botanic Garden Meise al-

a new species of Sapotaceae from Gabon.

lowed the description of four new African chanterelles (Cantharel-

lus guineensis De Kesel & Yorou, C. mikemboensis De Kesel & De-
greef, C. pseudomiomboensis De Kesel & Kasongo and C. stramineus
De Kesel). It is amazing that edible species of fungi gathered by
locals from woodlands and rain forests and sold in markets have,
until now, lacked a scientific description and name!
Photo Olivier Lachenaud.

In 2016, the rivers and streams of Central Africa revealed six new
diatoms. One, Eunotia leonardii J.C.Taylor & Cocquyt, was named
in honour of former staff member Jean Léonard who collected al-
gal material in the vicinity of Kisangani (DRC) and which are de-
posited in our herbarium and available for further study.
>
The discovery of diatoms has helped swell the number of new
species described in 2016. This was especially the case from sam-
ples gathered in the lakes and wet seepage areas of Antarctic is-
lands where 29 diatoms were described and named. The Antarctic
and sub-Antarctic regions remain an unknown and very exciting 7.
area for study. In addition to the haul of new diatoms, the new li-
chen, Ochrolechia kerguelensis Ertz & Kukwa, was described from
the Kerguelen Islands. This taxon is now part of a worldwide phy-
logenetic revision of the genus undertaken by an international
team including Botanic Garden Meise. The Garden is proud to
have many international specialists on its staff who extend our
knowledge of life on earth.

Relevant publications:
2, 10, 11, 15, 18, 19, 21, 30, 31, 32, 33, 44, 47, 51, 53, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60,61,
62, 63, 69, 74, 98
 Botanical inventories help
Lomami achieve National Park status

Botanic Garden Meise has a wealth of knowledge and experience

in the collaboration of projects in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo (DRC). One of these has been with the Lukuru Foundation,
an organisation that supports great ape conservation field pro-
jects. The aim of this collaboration was to secure National Park
status for a vast area (8,874 km2) of pristine forest in the largest,
un-researched wooded area in the DRC. The considerable efforts
of our Garden’s staff helped achieve this during 2016 when the
DRC’s Prime Minister, Augustin Matata Ponyo, officially estab-
lished the Parc National de la Lomami / Lomami National Park. It be-
came the first National Park to be created in the country since 1970
and only the eighth granted with the highest level of protection.
We are proud to have played a role in this achievement.

Botanic Garden Meise became involved in the project after the

Lukuru Foundation identified this important site in 2007. The area
is located between the rivers Tsuapa, Lomami and Lualaba that
flow through the Congo Basin landscape. After an initial period
of installing a base camp at Katopa, recruiting guards and study-
ing animal diversity, the Lukuru Foundation asked Botanic Garden
Meise and Missouri Botanic Garden (St. Louis, USA) to assist in
developing a botanical inventory of the area.

The first expedition launched in 2015, when three botanical

Marc Sosef and programme leader Terese Hart crossing a savanna

teams set out to Katopa. Two performed general inventories of

the different forest and savanna types, while the third team con-
ducted detailed inventories in one hectare forest plots. The teams
included 10 trainee Congolese students and several pygmies who
demonstrated their agility by climbing high trees to collect fruit
on their way back from Katopa base camp.

and flowering material from the canopy.

To dry the collected plant material, primitive stoves were con-

structed above a bush fire. In this way, the first 500 dried plant
specimens to be recorded from the area were dried and trans-
Photo Corneille Ewango.

ported to Meise and St. Louis for identification by specialists.

These specimens revealed several species new to science. A small
cabin was erected at the Katopa base camp to house a duplicate
set of herbarium specimens to serve as a local reference assisting
the identification of new material, such as those gathered by the
trained students who continue to collect in the area. >

In May 2016, we were all shocked to receive news that the

Katopa camp had been attacked by rebel soldiers and burned to
the ground. Luckily, nobody was hurt, but the loss of material,
including the reference herbarium, has proved a serious set-back
for the program and demonstrated the importance of duplicating
herbarium material off-site.
Flowers of a new species of Psydrax (Rubiaceae)

8.
in the Lomami forests.
Photo Marc Sosef.

<
Inside the highly diverse lowland rain forest, Mabounié, Gabon.
Photo Ehoarn Bidault.

>

Exceptional progress towards

completion of the Flora of Gabon

The central African country of Gabon has an exceptional bio-

diversity. Its lowland rain forests cover 80% of the landmass and
are considered the most species-rich in Africa. In recognition of
this, in 2002, the former President of Gabon, Omar Bongo, cre-
ated 13 new National Parks, covering 10% of the territory’s land
surface. Our knowledge of the botanical diversity of Gabon, and
notably within these parks is still limited. To date, around 5,500
species are known to occur in the country, but based on the fre-
quency of recent discoveries the true number is thought to be over
7,000 species.

Botanic Garden Meise coordinates the production of the multi-

volume Flore du Gabon. In 2016, this series received an exceptional
boost with the production of two volumes incorporating over 350
species. More than three quarters were within the papilionoid sub-
family of the legumes. This great effort was co-authored by eight
specialists, two of which work at Botanic Garden Meise.

A Flora is an essential tool for conservation and therefore vital

for the preservation and wise management of this botanically rich
area. A park manager, for example, needs to know which spe-
Millettia mannii, a small tree sometimes planted as

cies occur within their park, which are rare, those that only occur
within Gabon, or are otherwise important for animals or mankind.
It is vital to be able to discriminate a rare species from a common
an ornamental, Mabounié, Gabon.

relative and to glean knowledge of their ecology. This type of in-

formation is provided from a Flora through identification keys,
Photo Olivier Lachenaud.

correct scientific names, morphological descriptions highlight-

ing diagnostic features, vernacular names, information on rarity,
ecology, etc.

Preparing the family treatments is very time-consuming and can

only be done by experts. The Flora of Gabon series started in the
< early 1960s by the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle in Paris.
By 2005, 60% of species had been treated in 37 volumes, but pro-
gress had slowed down. Then, our sister institute at Wageningen 9.
(Dept. of Biosystematics, Wageningen University, the Nether-
lands, now part of the Naturalis Biodiversity Centre at Leiden)
took over the responsibility. Between 2009 and 2013, they pub-
lished eight volumes covering 450 species. In 2014, Botanic Garden
Meise and Naturalis agreed to jointly produce this Flora and our
Garden coordinates all efforts. Botanical exploration continues
in Gabon, increasing our knowledge of its botanical diversity and
supporting the completion of Flore du Gabon.

Relevant publications:
129, 132, 133, 134, 138
 Bananas from Bougainville Island
(Papua New Guinea)

With an annual yield of over 140 million tons and an economic

value of nearly 45 billion dollars, bananas are the fourth most im-
portant food crop on the planet after maize, wheat and rice. Of
these enormous quantities, only 15% of the world’s banana produc-
tion is exported to Europe and the US, 85% is consumed by local
people in Asia, Africa and South America. For Africa alone, 90
million people are dependent on bananas for their daily nutrition.
Despite its high economic value and its large importance in food

Rare Musa Fe’i cultivar found on Buka Island.

production, very little is known about the taxonomy, ecology and
evolution of bananas. As a result, a three-week expedition was un-
dertaken to one of the regions where the initial cultivation of ba-
nanas is thought to have occurred, Papua New Guinea. On Papua

Photo Gabriel Sachter-Smith.

New Guinea (PNG), a team of five scientists from the National
Agricultural Research Institute (Laloki, PNG), Bioversity Interna-
tional (Montpellier, France) and Botanic Garden Meise visited the
remote island of Bougainville situated at ca. 800km from main-
land PNG. The expedition aimed to find new cultivars of edible
bananas that were not collected before as well as to investigate the
different populations of wild bananas that occur on the island. In <
total 24 populations of two different wild bananas were collected
(Musa bukensis and Musa maclayi ssp. maclayi) as well as ca. 50 new
edible cultivars not found elsewhere and that are useful for further
cultivation. The new banana cultivars were transported as living
suckers to mainland PNG where they are currently grown in the
4x4 with collected banana suckers on top of the roof.

Laloki banana field station. For each collection, detailed descrip-

tions were made of habitat, overall morphology and associated
animals and plant species. In the next phase, the wild populations
of Musa bukensis and Musa maclayi ssp. maclayi and the newly col-
lected banana cultivars will be examined using molecular methods
in order to find out how quickly bananas reproduce in the wild and
Photo Gabriel Sachter-Smith.

determine how many different origins of edible bananas exist.

>

Evolutionary dynamics and

biogeography of Musaceae

Tropical Southeast Asia is one of the most species-rich regions

in the world. Its high degree of species-richness is shaped by the
areas’ geological and climatic history, which resulted in large
differences between Indo-Burma (Myanmar, Thailand, Laos,
southwestern China, Vietnam and Cambodia) and the Malayan
Archipelago (Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea and the
Philippines). Besides the presence of several different plant fami-
lies in tropical Southeast Asia, this region also contains most of the
species of the banana family. During a recent study on the evolu-
tion of bananas, we found a link between the origin and diversi-
Dispersal pathway of the genus Musa in Southeast Asia

fication of Musaceae (banana family), and the geological history

of the Southeast Asian subcontinent. For this, we used molecular
10 . techniques, which helped us to construct a tree-of-life for the ba-
nanas. The Musaceae family was dated using known fossils, and
evolutionary patterns were inferred using ancestral area recon-
struction and diversification rate analyses. Our results showed
that all main banana groups originated in northern Indo-Burma
during the early Eocene (56 million years ago) when most of the
the last 30 million years.
Photo Steven Janssens.

Southeast Asian islands known today like Java and Borneo did not
exist. Only when those islands emerged from the sea millions of
years later and their climate was suitable for large tropical herbs to
grow could banana species colonised this new land.

<
 The Field Guide to the wild
plants of Benelux, a brand new,
richly illustrated flora

What blooms there? That is a question often asked by nature lov-

ers. It is often not easy to give the scientifically correct answer. For
wild plants in the Benelux a scientific Flora exists, but is intended
for professional scientists, informed amateurs and botany stu-
dents. With the present Field Guide, we want to make it possible
for everyone who is interested to recognize wild plants.

This unique Field Guide illustrates more than 1,300 species of

wild plants that can be observed in Belgium, the Netherlands and
the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and also in the border regions
of northern France. Only grasses, sedges and rushes have not
been included. The Guide uses the latest methodology regarding
the classification of flowering plants and the delimitation of spe-
cies. This rigorous scientific basis is supplemented by more than
5,000 pin-sharp images, which illustrate both the growth habit of
the plant down to the smallest details of the flowers. Some flow-
ers have been photographed in such detail for the first time. The
final images are the result of focus stacking photography on fresh
plant material. The easy-to-use identification keys, the clear and
concise descriptions, the colour pictures and the distribution maps
allow the easy identification of different species.

This publication is the result of a successful collaboration be-

tween Ruud van der Meijden and Fabienne Van Rossum, two
botanists who share the same passion: the study of the flora of our
region. Their scientific work is illustrated by the talented photog-
rapher Maarten Strack van Schijndel. The book is also a happy
example of botanical cooperation at European level. Not only are
authors from different countries, but compiling distributional
data and photo images has involved the collaboration of specialists
from the leading institutes and societies of Belgium, the Nether-
lands, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and France.

This book, also existing in French and in Dutch, is the perfect

companion for novice botanists and lovers of country walks to dis-
cover the surprisingly rich flora of our region.

Relevant publications:
In search of lost plants…

139, 140, 141

Photo Francine Bailly.

<

11 .
taking pictures of living plants in the field.
Maarten Strack van Schijndel

Photo Fabienne Van Rossum.

>
 Progress towards a flora for Katanga

Upper Katanga, in the south of the Democratic Republic of the

Congo (DRC), has a very rich and phyto-geographically diverse
flora. The natural woody vegetation comprises miombo wood-
lands dominated by Zambezian species, evergreen dense forests
(muhulu) and riparian forests (mushitu) both with an important
contribution of Guineo-Congolian elements.

Katanga is subjected to dramatic deforestation, mostly due to

mining industry and charcoal production, threatening its status
as a hotspot for biodiversity. The knowledge about the flora of
Katanga remains insufficient. The last comprehensive catalogue
dates back to 1921 and is badly outdated. This gap of knowledge
seriously hampers any attempt to prioritise conservation efforts
and to design conservation policies.

In collaboration with the Université Libre de Bruxelles and the

Congolese not-for-profit organisation ‘Biodiversité au Katanga-
BAK asbl’, Botanic Garden Meise has prepared an illustrated book
on the trees and shrubs of Upper Katanga. During the preparation
of the book, a checklist was assembled and updated. It now com-
prises some 700 taxa (lianas excluded). The following figures high-
light how far we are from a comprehensive knowledge of the flora:

• 29 taxa in the checklist are new records for Upper Ka-

tanga, of which 11 are new to the DRC

• 22 taxa were not recorded in the published volumes of

the Flora of Central Africa; 39 taxa previously reported

Cover of the book Arbres et arbustes du Haut-Katanga.

for Upper Katanga require confirmation

• 33 taxa were reported in error. Twenty taxa are strictly

endemic of Upper Katanga, but most of these need taxo-
nomic revision.

In preparing the book, 500 individual trees were tagged and

geo-referenced in situ. These were monitored for three consecu-
tive years to obtain photographs of all phenological states. Some
800 herbarium specimens have been collected and deposited in
Botanic Garden Meise’s herbarium (BR).

For the first time, the book proposes a general overview of the
woody flora of Upper Katanga, including identification keys for
700 species, and illustrated descriptions of 214 species. <

Developing local expertise in plant taxonomy at the University

of Lubumbashi is the priority over the next few years.

Meerts, P. & Hasson, M. (2016). Arbres et arbustes du Haut-

Katanga. Jardin botanique Meise. 386 p. ISBN: 978-9082451191

12 .
Exerpt from the new flora.
Photo Sven Bellanger.

<
 Understanding
ecosystems
In a world increasingly under environmental pressure,
plants, ecosystems and the services they provide need
to be maintained to keep our planet healthy. Amongst
other things they mitigate the effects of greenhouse
gasses, play an important role in the global water cycle,
and help combat desertification.

The work of our researchers helps us understand how

ecosystems function, and how they can be described
and monitored. They also investigate invasive species
that influence native species. Throughout the world, in
Africa as in Belgium, humankind is fully dependent on
healthy ecosystems.

13 .
 Exploration and conservation of Coffea
canephora diversity in the Congo basin

Accounting for about 16% of total coffee production worldwide,

robusta coffee (Coffea canephora) is the second most important
commercial coffee species. Although robusta has a bitterer flavour
than arabica coffee, its market share is increasing due to arabica
coffee being detrimentally affected by climate change and disease.

Robusta coffee nursery of INERA,Yangambi.

C. canephora is native to the tropical forests of Central and West
Africa where it typically grows in small, isolated populations in
primary rainforests. A comprehensive conservation strategy for
safeguarding genetic variation in wild populations is of great im-
portance because they are under threat due to degeneration of
habitat.

Photo Filip Vandelook.

The region of Yangambi and Kisangani in the Democratic Re-
public of the Congo is of particular interest because wild popula-
tions of C. canephora still grow wild in the forests. The first success-
ful crop of robusta coffee was cultivated in the area (Lula, early
<
20th century). Yangambi is also the home of a research station for
tropical agriculture (INERA, formally INEAC). INERA was an
important coffee research station from the 1930’s where an exten-
sive robusta collection was gathered. The crop was so popular that
even today almost every village has robusta coffee plants in back
gardens, where locals collect the beans and use the plants for me-
dicinal purposes.

The genetic diversity in wild (in situ) and cultivated (ex situ) C.
canephora is unknown. To address this, Botanic Garden Meise or-
ganised an expedition to Yangambi in collaboration with local
students and local guides. Effort targeted mapping the location of
plants and populations so diversity could be sampled. This visit in-
cluded assessing the status of the INERA coffee research program
Robusta coffee (right) and plantain (banana) grown

at Yangambi. During several field trips to the region, leaf samples

from ten wild C. canephora trees were gathered. These leaves, to-
gether with those of the most important trees in the INERA cof-
fee collection, will be analysed to determine genetic diversity as
in a backyard garden in Yangambi.

well as gene flow between cultivated and wild populations in the

Yangambi region. Several fruits and cuttings of wild coffee trees
Photo Filip Vandelook.

sampled during field trips were introduced in the INERA coffee

collection for ex situ conservation and to enrich the genetic re-
sources of the collection. The once rich collection of genetic lines
of robusta coffee at INERA have been drastically reduced and
now number only six elite lines. These, along with a few seldom
used lines from Lula, L’équateur (Libenge) and Bas-Congo (Petit >
Kwilu), are the only plants used for propagation and breeding.
The Yangambi research station has suffered from a severe lack of
investment over past few decades. However, plans to re-establish
the station’s prominence are underway, allowing it to become an
important ex situ resource for coffee genetic diversity collected
throughout the DRC.
Coffea canephora growing in the rainforest under-

14 .
story in Yangambi Biosphere Reserve.
Photo Filip Vandelook.

>
 Changes in lichen flora and
polypores in Belgium

In 2011, 20 plots of 50 x 50 m in 10 forest reserves in Wallonia

were examined for the presence of epiphytic (growing on trees) li-
chens and polypores. In 2016, the same 20 plots were re-examined.
Between 2011 and 2016 the epiphytic lichen flora has changed. In
all the three phytogeographic districts visited (Ardennes, Meuse
and Lorraine district), species richness has declined. Continental,
species that prefer cool conditions and a more acidic, nutrient-
poor bark are most declined. Areas where such species are pre-
Photo Micheline Wegh.

dominant, particularly the Ardennes district, are the most threat-

ened. Newly found species prefer warm conditions, have a higher
nutrient demand and a preference for nutrient-enriched bark. In
In the field.

the last decade, a shift of species preferring cold conditions and

a more acidic bark to species preferring the opposite has repeat-
> edly been observed in Belgium, both in more urban areas of the
Brussels Capital Region as well as in more rural areas of Flemish
Brabant and Limburg. Since most of the decreased acidophilous
species have a clear preference for cold conditions, and the values
of pH and temperature are strongly correlated (r=0.90, p<0.001),
increasing temperature caused by global warming is probably the
main factor responsible for the observed changes.

The lists of polypore species observed in 2016 are significantly

shorter than the lists obtained in 2011 in the same plots. However,
it is well known that fruitbody production can vary greatly from
year to year and besides, despite the relatively poor season, sev-
Making an inventory of lichen species.

eral new species have been found in most of the plots. Results
also show that the mycological richness is significantly higher in
the forest reserves than in the stands used for wood production,
especially with regard to rare species and to indicator species for
Photo Micheline Wegh.

forests of great biological interest. The research also confirms the 15 .

interest of the Ellenberg coefficients applied to the higher plant
vegetation (phytosociological relevés) for the evaluation of the
physicochemical characteristics of the different plots.
< Relevant publication:
168
 The terrestrial and freshwater
biodiversity of Amsterdam
and Saint Paul Islands

Over the past few years, the biodiversity of the French sub-Ant-
arctic islands has been intensively studied, particularly with re-
gard to terrestrial invertebrates, angiosperms, diatoms and, more
recently, mosses, ferns and lichens. However, for the two most
northerly positioned islands in this area, Amsterdam and Saint

Orthoseira verleyenii, an endemic diatom typically

found in the lava tubes on Amsterdam Island.
Paul Islands, detailed studies on their terrestrial and freshwater
biodiversity is scant.

An initial collecting trip in 2007 highlighted a species richness

hitherto practically unknown. Consequently, fieldwork aimed at

Photo Bart Van de Vijver.

sampling the terrestrial and freshwater biota took place on the
islands in 2016. The new expedition was a joint effort between
French Polar Research Institute (IPEV), Botanic Garden Meise,
Museum d’Histoire Naturelle de Paris and Université de Rennes.
This trip was designed to be an intensive study by combining mor-
phological and molecular studies.
>
The Amsterdam and Saint Paul Islands are very small, young
volcanic islands situated halfway between Africa and Australia in
the southern part of the Indian Ocean. They are amongst the most
remote islands in the world and their extreme isolation has led to
a high level of endemism amongst the native flora and fauna. A
characteristic feature of the vegetation of Amsterdam Island is its
distinct altitudinal zonation with a clear gradient from a temperate
climate at lower altitudes to a cold, near sub-Antarctic climate at
the top of the Caldera (881m).

Because of their unique geographic position, remoteness and

climate, these islands are key elements to address issues of bioge-
ography, long-distance dispersal and colonisation on a large scale
across the Southern Hemisphere.

During the fieldwork, all typical habitats on Amsterdam and

Saint-Paul Islands were explored such as the native Phylica arborea-

Caloplaca amsterdamensis, a lichen endemic to

forest, the peat bogs of the Caldera region and the rocky slopes
and volcanic outcrops of the lowland areas. The distribution and

Amsterdam and Saint Paul Islands.

ecology of several endemic species, described by our team were
studied in detail. These included the lichen Caloplaca amsterdamen-
sis, the fern Megalastrum taafense and the diatom Orthoseira verleye-
nii. Special attention was given to the unique flora and fauna of lava

Photo Damien Ertz.

tubes that characterise the island. This biodiversity assessment is
of prime importance to improve the current efforts in restoring
the islands in their original pristine state and to create a valid refer-
ence point to evaluate future Global Change impacts. The results
will also lead to publication of a field guide illustrating the fauna <
and flora of the two islands.

16 .
View on the Caldera of Amsterdam Island
showing its craters and lakes.
Photo Bart Van de Vijver.

>
 Safeguarding
plant life
It is estimated that up to one third of plant species are
currently threatened or face extinction in the wild,
mainly due to habitat fragmentation and destruction,
combined with climate change. Every plant has a crucial
role in a healthy functioning ecosystem. Some may hold
unknown treasures such as molecules with helpful me-
dicinal properties. Therefore, the safeguarding of plant
species is essential.

Our research contributes to the development of tools for

in situ conservation in valuable natural sites both nation-
ally and internationally. Off-site or ex situ conservation
is equally important. We collect plant material from the
wild for preservation in the herbarium and propagation
in our living collections, and in the collections of partner
botanic gardens. Our seed bank holds the seeds of many
rare and endangered species, thus safeguarding critical
genetic variation. In combining our expertise and col-
lections we are able to assist with the reintroduction of
species in natural habitats both now and into the future.
17 .
 Seed bank receives six threatened taxa
from metal-enriched Belgian soils to aid
ex situ conservation efforts

In Europe, metal-enriched soils are quite rare and form residual

species have been recently collected (10,000 seeds each) by the Seed Bank staff
sanctuaries for metallophyte communities. The number of metal-

Belgium and Western Germany. Five accessions of this narrowly distributed

Viola calaminaria is endemic to zinc, cadmium and lead outcrops in Eastern
lophytes present in Western Europe is extremely small. Among
the vascular plants, only seven taxa are present in Belgium where
there has been so far little effort to conserve metallophyte germ-
plasm. These seven species are also the only ones that are charac-
teristics of a habitat that is recognised as valuable by the European
Commission, i.e. the 'Calaminarian grasslands'. The conservation
status of this habitat in Europe is generally unfavourable. In Bel-
gium, the total area of these grasslands does not exceed 70ha.

Photo Maarten Strack van Schijndel.

Botanic Garden Meise has recently banked seeds from popula-
tions of six of the seven metallophytes. Up to five samples (con-
taining several thousand seeds) were collected per species in order

of Botanic Garden Meise.

to maximize sampling of their genetic variation. For Cochlearia
pyrenaica however, only a single population survives in Belgium.
The number of accessions of these metallophytes found in botanic
gardens worldwide is surprisingly low, confirming that the collec-
tion campaign conducted by Botanic Garden Meise is timely and
relevant. The 19 newly harvested populations will thus contribute <
to the global ex situ conservation of these threatened taxa (which,
currently include only 35 known accessions in the world).

Dry heat as seed sterilisation method

successfully tested on wild species

Seed-borne pathogens are a daily issue for ex situ collection man-

agers who try to solve it by using various chemicals more or less
harmful to staff and the plant material stored. The most common
physical method for seed sterilisation is heat treatment, usually
combined with moisture (hot water, hot steam). The method is
based on the assumption that pathogens have a lower tolerance to
elevated temperatures than the seeds. The behaviour of seeds to
dry heat is poorly known. With a few exceptions, dry heat treat-
ments have been tested on food plants. Botanic Garden Meise un-
dertook an experiment to provide new data on the effectiveness
Controlling seed germination at Botanic Garden Meise.

of dry heat as a seed sterilisation technique. To do so, the Seed

Bank team conducted germination tests on 13,200 seeds from 66
wild species of temperate regions belonging to 22 families. Results
indicated that dry seeds exposed to 60°C for an hour were less in-
fected by seed-borne pathogens compared to the untreated sam-
ples in 14% of the species, whereas no change was registered for
the remaining taxa. To our knowledge, this is the first attempt to
Photo Sandrine Godefroid.

test this technique on a wide range of wild species from temperate

regions. The fact that the results are consistent (reduced infection
18 .
or, at worst, no effect) is an encouraging outcome compared to
chemical methods which too often give incoherent results. Fur-
thermore, for all 66 studied species, no decrease in germination
percentage was detected after the dry heat treatment. Given its
positive effect on infection control without affecting seed viabil- >
ity, dry heat treatment as proposed here opens opportunities for
seed bank managers, but potentially also for disinfecting herbar-
ium collections.
 house for species that thrive under low light conditions
Additional shading installed in a tropical collection

on the floor of rainforests.

Photo Marc Reynders.
<

On the road for ecology based-

cultivation in the glasshouse collections

In 2016, the plants in four mixed tropical glasshouses were reor-

ganised to provide each species with conditions that most closely
matched their natural growing environments. Historically, the
large ex situ plant collections such as the tropical plant collection
of Botanic Garden Meise were largely grouped in different green-
houses based on taxonomy (e.g. Aroids, Begonias, ferns) or by geo-
graphical region (e.g. tropical Africa). Each gardener was respon-
Labels showing ecological codes to inform

sible for several of these glasshouses and had between 500-1000

different plant species to care for, all with specific needs. However,
gardeners on cultivation methods.

for practical reasons, uniform cultivation methods had been ap-

plied within each greenhouse. While many species tolerate these
conditions some do not. This was because some species have spe-
Photo Marc Reynders.

cific ecological requirements, as a result we found that some rare

endangered species had declined or died in collection.

In a project spanning multiple years, collection managers, gar-

deners, scientists, internship students and volunteers have been
> involved in reorganising the collections based on their ecologi-
cal need rather than taxonomic- or provenance-based affinities.
Initially, basic ecological data for each species was gathered and
placed into the living collection database, LIVCOL. This is infor-
mation included different parameters from their natural habitat,
such as temperature, humidity, light intensity and soil type. This
the middle with dark leaves is more resistant to bright light
of their specific environmental needs. Note the species in

data made it possible to analyse the species present and reorgan-

ise the collections so that each species received (as far as possible)
Rhipsalis collection in the glasshouses before analysis

their optimal climate. Further, we were able to revise the soils used
make changes where necessary. While this information is useful in
the database it needed to be available to the Garden staff. There-
compared with the surrounding species.

fore, we adopted the method that has been used in the outdoor
collections for many years. It comprises a short-hand version of
the information incorporated onto printed plant labels.
Photo Marc Reynders.

Over the past three years improving a taxon’s ecological data has
targeted some of our most important collections, such as Pterido-
phyta, Orchidaceae, Araceae, Rubiaceae, epiphytic Cactaceae Im-
patiens and Costus. Some of the plants in these collections were re-
housed to receive better growing conditions. This was especially
> true for our mixed tropical houses where species from different
layers of the rainforests were grown alongside savanna plants. 19 .
Species were consequently placed in the following ‘cultivation’
groups: epiphytes, herbaceous plants (forest understory), herba-
ceous plants and giant herbs (secondary forests), woody plants and
climbers (rainforests) and woody plants (savanna). Within these
groups it proved possible to cultivate a diverse range of species
efficiently. This project has several interesting application for the
Garden. Firstly it gave us the knowledge to plan the multi-layered
canopies of the tropical forest displays in the Plant Palace. Sec-
ondly, it will be invaluable information to facilitate the transfer
of plant species into their optimal location in the new glasshouse
complex planned for construction during 2019-2020.
 Bolstering the use of biological
pest control in the glasshouses

Botanic Garden Meise holds a vast diversity of plants in collec-

tion and therefore does not suffer from a significant build-up in
pests that some commercial growers who focus on a narrow range
of plants experience.

Many species in collection have natural pest-resistance, but this

does not make them immune from attack. Vigilance and a quick
response after identifying a pest is important to keep the collec-
tions pest free. Recently, two leaf mining moths, the succulent
moth (Opogona scaphopis) and banana moth (O. sacchari), were
discovered in our glasshouses. To thwart this attack a meticulous
search of susceptible plants was conducted with repeat observa-

(Encephalarthos laurentianus) for control of mealybugs.

tions by our integrated pest control specialist and our team of gar-
deners.

Placing Cryptolaemus on a Kwango giant cycad

Since the 1990s, the Garden has placed strong emphasis on
biological control. The gardeners’ weapons include: introducing
natural enemies that prey on specific pests; application of sprays
derived from natural origin (e.g. plant oils); and pheromone and
light traps used for control and pest monitoring. In 2016, 28 dif- Photo Toon Mariën.

ferent predator species were used to control the ten worst pests,
such as aphid, mealybug, scale insect, spider mite, tomato looper
and cockroaches. When introducing new predators it is vital to
select species that cannot turn invasive in the wild, subsequently
predator choice is limited to (sub-) tropical species that would not
>
survive outside in Belgium.

The 28 predators include a diverse range of organisms includ-

ing bacteria, a range of invertebrates including mites and parasitic
wasps (and other invertebrates) and a few vertebrate species. The
vertebrates include two species of fish, the pearl gourami and rain-
bowfish that ensure the waterlilies in the Victoria pond remain
largely pest free. The yellow-striped poison frogs were released
in the Mabundu and Victoria glasshouses to combat ants. Ants are
well known for spreading certain pests such as aphids and scale
insects from one plant to another and ‘milk’ these for their sweet
honeydew in return. Therefore, targeting ants in this way is a sen-
sible approach to reduce troublesome pests. The yellow-striped
poison frogs came from a Flemish hobby breeder who imported
his original frogs from ‘Tesoros de Colombia’, an established frog
farm in Columbia that legally export native frogs. In the wild, as
their name suggests, these amphibians are poisonous. This occurs
due to a build-up of poison sequestered from specific ant species
on which they prey. Fortunately, the three ant species found in our
glasshouses lack these poisons rendering the frogs harmless and
safe to deploy.

By utilising natural enemies to control pests we are able to re-

duce our dependency on chemical sprays and the potential threat
of pesticide resistance, while safeguarding the health of the public
and staff.
Yellow-striped poison frogs (Dendrobates truncatus)

20 .
released in the Mabundu glasshouse for
the biological control of ants.
Photo Paul Borremans.

<
 qualities, grey have lowest qualities and yellow of intermediate value.
Lampernisse. Ditch segments in red are best for habitat and nature
Habitat and nature qualities for the ditches of the polders of
The polders of Lampernisse:
sleeping beauty or paradise lost?

Since 2002, almost 1200 ha of genuine, medieval polder land-

scape around the village of Lampernisse (West-Flanders) have
been protected by law as Natural Heritage. This designation was
based on cultural-historic values, their biological and ecologi-
cal characteristics and on the aesthetic qualities of the landscape.
Concurrently however, this area remains rather intensively ex-
ploited by agriculture.

< One of the main characteristics of the area is the dense net-
work of ditches and other small waterways, many following their
original medieval course. In two fieldwork-campaigns (2010 and
2015) 820 sections of ditches and cattle-pools were examined bo-
proved to be more interesting than traditionally believed (presence
Wet transition zones between ditch and meadow grazed by cattle

tanically. Results revealed that relatively rare plants like marsh

arrowgrass (Triglochin palustris), rootless duckweed (Wolffia ar-
rhiza), knotted hedge-parsley (Torilis nodosa), mare's-tail (Hippuris
vulgaris) and to some extend flowering-rush (Butomus umbellatus)
were better represented in this protected area than elsewhere in
the Polder-region, Flanders and Belgium. Moreover, 43 different
vegetation unit types were identified for floating and submersed
water- and mud or bank-vegetation. These characterised six major
ecological habitats.

However, vegetation dominated by reed was by far the best rep-

of marsh arrowgrass).
Photo Leo Vanhecke.

resented. This is because the management of ditches has been ne-

glected for too many decades. Consequently, reed-vegetation, as
the climax vegetation under these conditions, increased in abun-
dance and reduced ecological variation. In a recent response to
this (the past five years) ditch clearance has increased. However,
> the current systematic approach to clearance is too short a period
and consequently leads to further losses in plant diversity. Maxi-
mum biodiversity is achieved only when ditch clearing is locally
staggered, thus allowing species with specific niches to colonise
new places rather than become locally extinct. While ditch man-
agement is inevitable and necessary, neglect can prove attractive
for marsh plants with some developing astonishing wild popula-
tions. Grazing on the banks of ditches favours the differentiation
of vegetation and the presence of species such as marsh arrow-
grass, mare's-tail and knotted hedge-parsley.

The occurrence of ‘special’ species, the number of different

Flowering rush (Butomus umbellatus).

vegetation-units per ditch and the number of different ecological-

groups they represent, and finally the presence of well-developed
wet transition-zones between the water and the grazed meadow
Photo Leo Vanhecke.

and of forms of micro-relief (humps) indicating former wetter

conditions were used to calculate a value for the ‘habitat and na-
ture value’ of each ditch-segment. Three categories were distin-
guished. In the ‘best’ category the potential evacuation of the silt
in the ditches can only happen under strict conditions.
>
These habitat and nature values are developed as a tool to be
used in a bigger management-plan for the protected area. Gen- 21 .
eral dehydration of the soil conditions, silting up of the ditches
and recent changes in agricultural management, in particular the
replacement of grazing-land (with cattle) by mowing-grass (with
up to 5-6 mowing cycles per season) threaten these medieval land-
scapes, as well as their bird-life, as for the occurrence of some
specialised plant species and none the less for their traditional aes-
thetic aspects.

Relevant publications:
174, 175
 Bringing our
heritage to life
During its long history the Garden has constantly been
collecting and curating a wide range of botanical col-
lections, living plants, books, artefacts, instruments
but also buildings, glasshouses and landscapes. Many
of these elements still play an active role in our current
work; books and archives are consulted by researchers,
historic glasshouses protect plant collections and build-
ings and landscapes are visited and enjoyed by our visi-
tors.

This extensive and diverse collection requires constant

specialised care and upkeep and is an irreplaceable
source to develop innovative approaches to better fulfil
the mission of the Garden in a changing world.

22 .
 Botanic Garden Meise launches
the ‘Groene Noordrand’ project

North of Brussels, squeezed between busy roads, railway lines

and industrial areas, is an area of open green space with streams,
valleys, woods and fields known as the Groene Noordrand. This
comprises the Maalbeek Valley, an important area for nature that
connects green areas from Laarbeekbos in the west to Lintbos in
the east.

On September 1st, 2016 the Strategic Project ‘Groene Noordrand:

a metropolitan landscape from Laarbeekbos to Lintbos’ was initi-

by an array of organisations and interested members of the public.

ated as part of the Flemish Government’s Spatial Policy Plan for

Opening of the Strategic Project ‘Groene Noordrand’ attended

Flanders. The aim of the project is to create and maintain Groene
Noordrand as a sustainable, liveable and resilient open space, able
to respond positively to ongoing and future changes.

An integrated approach that includes the Maalbeek River basin

will combine landscape restoration, nature development, integral
water management and quiet recreation with sustainable agri-
culture. This effort is coordinated by the ‘Regionaal Landschap

Photo SP Groene Noordrand.

Groene Corridor’, in collaboration with Botanic Garden Meise
(among other partners). Our Garden is one of five green centres
in the Maalbeek Valley and an important touristic attraction of
valuable cultural heritage. Interestingly, our Garden faces similar
challenges to those faced by the wider area, such as creating a har-
mony between nature, biodiversity conservation and recreational
activities in an increasingly urbanised area.
<
The official launch of the project took place at our Garden in
October. This gathering encompassed a public meeting with di-
verse and enthusiastic presentations, a debate and a reception to
facilitate networking opportunities.

Historic and valuable books

receive new audiences

The library of Botanic Garden Meise owns an important collec-

tion of valuable books printed between the 16th and 19th centuries.
They cover a range of topics that include botany, horticulture and
botanical expeditions. Many of these volumes are richly illustrat-
ed.

This important collection was highlighted during 2016 when our

One of the books published in Brussels and kept at Botanic Garden Meise. It

Garden took part in an initiative known as the ‘Short Title Cata-

logue Vlaanderen Project’ (STCV). This project was initiated in
2000 and aims to develop an online database with extensive bib-
liographical descriptions of books printed in Flanders and Brussels
before 1801. The database contains over 23,550 descriptions, based
on more than 43,750 copies from important heritage collections in
Flanders and Brussels.
23 .
was a new description for the catalogue.

Botanic Garden Meise contributed by adding 92 descriptions to

the database of which 39 were new to the catalogue. This collabo-
ration has given our Garden the opportunity to increase its audi-
ence, allowing those interested in a wide range of disciplines better
Photo Nicole Hanquart.

access to these resources.

>
 The Wood Museum in the early 20th century.
Photo State Botanical Garden, Brussels.
<

The Forestry Museum,

a Sleeping Beauty about to wake

In 2016, much attention was paid to what could be termed the

‘Sleeping Beauty’ of Botanic Garden Meise, the collections from
the former Forestry Museum. A taskforce was created to evalu-
ate the possibility of reviving the artefacts for a potential new mu-
seum. Items, such as wood samples, fruits, logs and boards had sat
Denis Diagre-Vanderpelen spent hours handling tons of

in storage in a remote area of the main building where they had not
seriously been viewed for decades.

The taskforce took on a varied range of work to evaluate the

old wood samples to select those for

items. Some dealt with the tons of somewhat dirty bark, wood
and root samples while others busily worked on historical re-
the imminent Wood Museum.

sources that documented the former museum. Items considered

unsalvageable were discarded, while those worth retaining were
treated for pests and diseases. Each artefact’s scientific data was
Photo Régine Fabri.

checked to avoid keeping samples that were of no value to the

institution. Our art historian carefully scanned dozens of early
20th century pictures of Museum's collection, which are now ac-
cessible through our Garden’s website. They comprise invaluable
data about what was once displayed in the Museum. The historian >
also combed countless archives and books to unveil the genesis of
the former Forestry Museum. The taskforce concluded that the
collection was of high quality and warranted public display once
more. Soon, a new, modern Forestry Museum will find a home in
Botanic Garden Meise.

The work was summarised in a paper delivered at the 7th Euro-

24 . pean Society for the History of Science Conference (Prague, Sep-
tember 2016), in which our historian detailed how the Museum was
created during the late 19th century and why it eventually settled in
our Garden (which at that time was located in Brussels). The evo-
lution of the museum echoed changes in Belgian society during
the 20th century. Interest in the forestry museum has since grown,
captivating an audience both at home and abroad. Consequently
our historian is about to publish articles about the history of the
Museum in national and international publications.
 Startup of the digitisation process by
Minister Muyters

DOE!, the mass digitisation project of the herbarium of Botanic

Garden Meise, started in 2015 and is financed by the Flemish Gov-
ernment. The aim within three years is to digitise the complete
African and Belgian herbarium collection comprising around 1.2
million specimens and make the data and images available on a
new virtual herbarium.

The official launch of the project was conducted by Flemish Min-

ister Muyters, Minister of Work, Economy, Innovation and Sports
on 31st May, 2016. The event started with a warm welcome from
Steven Dessein, CEO of our Garden, followed by a brief explana-
tion of the project by Project Manager, Sofie De Smedt. This was

Minister Muyters lays the first herbarium specimens

followed by a speech by Minister Muyters and Marc Lindeman,
head of the company Picturae that specialises in scanning images
and making collections available to the public. After these presen-
tations Minister Muyters had the honour of inaugurating the pro-

on the conveyor belt for digitisation.

ject by placing the first herbarium specimens on the conveyor belt.
This marked the official launch of the DOE! Project and received a
great deal of media attention.

Photo Peter Lanckmans. The project started in 2015 with our technical staff preparing the
collection with volunteers and students. For the actual digitisation,
Picturae, an external company, was hired. They installed in one of
our offices, a high-tech digitisation ‘street’ comprising a conveyor
< belt system with built-in camera. Up to 5,000 specimens a day can
be photographed using this system. Within a year, all 1.2 million
specimens will be imaged. The digital images are then sent to the
Flemish Institute for Archiving (VIAA) where they will be kept for
long-term storage.

Universities donate collections

to Botanic Garden Meise

Botanic Garden Meise’s herbarium (BR) received two important

collections in 2016, these were donated by the Free University of
Brussels (VUB) and the University of Leuven (KU Leuven).

Since the 1990’s, universities have focused on research with re-

duced interest in maintaining herbarium collections favouring
them to be curated elsewhere. In many cases these collections find
a new home at Meise. The transfer of a particular university’s col-
lections often happens at once, such as those donated by the VUB.
Sometimes, however, a university donates material gradually, such
as in the case of the University of Leuven. In the latter case, around
80,000 herbarium specimens from the ‘General Herbarium’ were
donated in 1999, followed in 2016 by collections preserved in al-
cohol. These contained c.1,000 preserved specimens, mostly from
young inflorescences and flower buds collected by Erik Smets
and his students for ontogenetic studies on angiosperms. It is also
anticipated that a further transfer of 20,000 herbarium vouchers
from their ‘Belgian Herbarium’ will be donated in 2017. These gifts
illustrate the importance of Botanic Garden Meise as a depository 25 .
of herbarium vouchers where important cultural, historic and sci-
entific knowledge on botany can be preserved for the future.
The alcohol collection of KU Leuven.
Photo Ann Bogaerts.

>
 (Re-)connecting
plants and people
Everywhere on the planet specific plant and fungi spe-
cies have provided local populations with food, energy,
materials for housing and tools, fibres for clothing and
medicines. In many parts of the world plants remain
the primary elements in fighting hunger, disease and
extreme poverty. Plants also often figure in cultural ex-
pressions and religion. Nowadays, cultural plant knowl-
edge is being lost and with it the vital connections we
have with plants and fungi.

Our researchers record how plants and fungi are used so

that this knowledge can be shared and distributed. Our
scientists’ ability to identify plants, even from tiny or an-
cient remains, contributes to fields as diverse as forensic
investigation and archaeology, thus constantly identify-
ing and establishing links between plants and people.

26 .
 Networking the mycologists of
the African Great Lakes

The programme ‘Network of mycologists of the African Great

Lakes region’ (MycoRGL) is targeted at improving knowledge and
research on fungi. The group, formed in 2013, comprises institu-
tions from Burundi, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo
(DRC) along with the Royal Institute of Natural Sciences of Bel-
gium and Botanic Garden Meise.
A trainee during the field workshop in Virunga National Park.

It is particularly targeted towards improving mycological knowl-

edge, especially on edible fungi from the Great Lakes region.
Through symposia and workshops members have the opportunity
to developing useful tools for mycological research and strength
their technical and scientific capacity.

The second symposium of MycoRGL named: ‘Diversity of fun-

gi in the African Great Lakes region, a resource with high food
and economic potential’ took place in Goma (DRC) in November
2016. This one-week event, funded by the Belgian Science Policy
Photo Jérôme Degreef.

(BELSPO), brought together 50 people, including 27 speakers from

Burundi, Rwanda and the DRC. Participants presented findings
related to ecology, diversity, and the productivity of wild mush-
rooms. The importance of traditional knowledge was also dis-
cussed along with which fungi are gathered and consumed by local
>
human populations. Several experiments detailed the production
of wild fungal strains and prompted conversation on constraints,
opportunities, challenges and expectations on this subject. These
were important topics because they are prerequisites to cultivat-
ing wild mushrooms in a local population.

The group made several recommendations: integration of the

network's activities to help safeguard the region’s biodiversity;
recognition to respect the knowledge and expertise of local and
indigenous communities; valorization of the fungal diversity. The
symposium concluded with a field workshop at the base of the
Nyiragongo Volcano (Virunga National Park). This aided infor-
mal discussions and increased capacity building between the net-
work’s members.

More info :
MycoRGL network website : http://www.biodiv.be/mycorgl
Symposium website : https://mycorgl2016.jimdo.com
Participants of the 2nd MycoRGL Workshop in Goma.

27 .
Photo Franck Hidvégi.

<
 Enriching our knowledge
of African chanterelles

Several years ago Botanic Garden Meise started a vast ethnomy-

cological research project in Katanga, the southernmost province
of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). During field-
work over 100 wild, edible mushroom species were recorded.
Garden researchers discovered that the local human population

Katangese local sellers offering a collection of freshly picked chanterelles.

used only a fraction of the available edible species as food and to
generate income. The most utilised type were the Chanterelles
(Cantharellus) with, to a lesser extent, a handful of termite mush-
rooms (Termitomyces), two amanita’s (Amanita) and some milkcap
fungi (Lactarius and Lactifluus).

Our study showed that the diversity of chanterelles, recognised

both by locals and the scientific literature was a serious underesti-
mate of actual diversity. By lumping together similar species from
the same environment, local people in Katanga distinguish three
or four ‘species’ of chanterelle sorted, at local markets, by colour:
red; pale yellow; and orange. Our study also showed that scientists
had done something similar by lumping a large number of African

Photo A. De Kesel.
species under a single scientific name, many of these differed in
morphology and habitat preference. The decisions by scientists
had resulted in ‘fuzzy species’, with morphological differences,
odd distribution patterns and diverging ecological preferences in
the same (so-called) species. <

This meant that much of the existing knowledge on tropical Af-

rican Cantharellus was unreliable.

In order to connect people with edible fungi we needed to ini-

tially understand their taxonomy and have tools to identify them.
Otherwise questions like: which species are available?; Which
fungi are used?; Where do they naturally occur? can never be an-
swered. Consequently our Garden, initially invested in resolving
the taxonomy of the African Cantharellus. Our findings demon-
commonly sold edible chanterelle in Katanga (DRC).
Cantharellus miomboensis one of the largest and most

strated that there are 18 species of edible Cantharellus in Katanga,

not the three previously thought. Collectively they can produce
30kg of fresh weight per hectare annually. From the 18 species four
were new to science and had specific habitats. This knowledge is
important, at all levels of society, because it allows communica-
tion, which ultimately contributes to valuing the natural world and
exploiting natural fungi sustainably. To communicate our findings
on African chanterelles, our Garden published a new identification
key listing 43 recorded species of chanterelle. This is an important
Photo A. De Kesel.

document and further demonstrates that Africa is by far the most

diverse continent for Cantharellus in the world.

>
Cantharellus platyphyllus the most commonly sold edible

28 .
chanterelle in Katanga (DRC).
Photo A. De Kesel.

>
 Demonstration on cooking with pulses.
Big Picnic:
a European project on food security

Photo Manon Van Hoye.

Botanic Garden Meise is participating in a European Union
three-year funded initiative called Big Picnic. This project is under
the Horizon 2020 framework focusing on food security. Together
with 19 partners from 12 European countries and Uganda from Af-
<
rica, we will develop themed outreach exhibits and science cafés
related to this complex, versatile and highly topical subject.

In 2016, we invited stakeholders to design a blueprint of how the

project will be implemented in our Garden. During co-creation
Discussing statements on food security at the symposium meetings staff, consultants and partner organisations developed
Vlaamse NME-dag on education, nature and environment. the strategy of the project for the next three years and cemented
partnerships.

To launch the topic to the public, Garden visitors saw demon-

strations on cooking with pulses, a small exhibition and a tast-
ing session of different apple cultivars. These activities created a
background to explore issues surrounding food security with the
public.
Photo Jutta Kleber.

The remaining period of the project will have a host of exhibi-

tions, workshops and science cafés, sensitising and informing a
large public, using a varied range of approaches to suit all target
groups.
<

Documentary on Rwandan Fungi

In 2015, the Botanic Garden organised a study mission on edible

mushrooms to Rwanda. The project, presented in the 2015 An-
nual Report, included the production of a short documentary. Du­
ring autumn 2016, the resulting 15 minute film was premiered at
a number of international locations. These included Botanic Gar-
den Meise, the federal National Agricultural Library Congress in
Washington DC (USA) and at The Symposium of the Mycologists
Network of the African Great Lakes Region in Goma (Democratic
Republic of the Congo). The documentary was well received from
all audiences and highlighted different aspects of the mission by
following the researchers at work. The video included specimen
is available at the YouTube channel of the Botanic Garden Meise.

harvesting in the field, laboratory work, mushroom cultivation by

The documentary produced in French with subtitles in English

the Rwandan project partner ‘Kigali Farms’, conservation of living

samples in the fungi collection at the Catholic University of Lou-
vain and the preservation of dried specimens in the herbarium of
Botanic Garden Meise. 29 .

The documentary was produced in French with subtitles in Eng-

lish and is available at https://youtu.be/dY84DavE5HQ or via the
mission’s blog: http://rwandafungi.blogspot.be
Photo Franck Hidvégi.

>
 Inspiring
and informing
The Garden is home to 18,000 different kinds of plant,
set within 92 hectares of historical domain. It is a beau-
tiful, diverse, green space and a source of enjoyment,
wonder and inspiration tempting about 125,000 visitors
per year.

Using a broad spectrum of plant displays, museum ar-

tefacts, webpages, science communication tools, events,
informal learning, awareness instruments and experi-
ence-based educational activities, the Garden has the
potential to change people’s understanding of the im-
portance of plants for human well-being and to empha-
sise the vital importance of plant conservation.

Building on this understanding, the Garden can stimu-

late people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to act in
a sustainable and responsible way.

30 .
 Record breaking picnic table at Meise

During the first weekend of the Summer Floridylle our Garden

became official record breakers achieving the ´longest picnic ta-
ble' ever constructed. Prior to this the Guinness World Record was
held by an organisation in Kuwait, which built a table 194.7m long
earlier in 2016.

Staff at Botanic Garden Meise designed and constructed the

table as part of the summer festival activities. It comprised of 178
painted metal legs supporting 2,400 metres of wooden shelving.
The table was decorated along its length with 70 pots of heirloom
vegetable cultivars and edible flowers. Some of these were sown
by visitors as an activity during the spring festival.
The longest picnic table in the world.

On 26 June, at noon, the adjudicator walked along the driveway

or Eredreef, where the picnic table was situated, with his meas-
Photo Peter lanckmans.

ure to announce the new world record with a staggering 300.58m.

With this 600 visitors, with full picnic baskets, celebrated with
cheers and applause.

The picnic table remained in position all summer to allow visitors

> to picnic and celebrate this success. At the end of the summer, dur-
ing a ‘tropical’ warm evening, the table had its finale with around
500 people celebrating and picnicking well into the evening.

The masterpieces of
the Brussels Museums

Botanic Garden Meise took part in a project named ‘#100 Mas-

ters’ that aimed to highlight the key artifacts housed in the muse-
ums of Brussels. The initiative was led by the Brussels Museums
Council, an umbrella association comprising around 100 members
including federal, municipal, community and private museums.
Each member of the Brussels Museum Council presented, what
they considered, their 10 most important collections – known as
‘masterpieces’. From that selection 100 were chosen as the top 100
masterpieces and published.

Three of our Garden’s proposed masterpieces were selected in

the top 100! These were: the Balatkas, the small glasshouse built by
Alphonse Balat in 1854, the Amazonian waterlily (Victoria cruziana)
and the titan arum (Amorphophallus titanum), which happened to be
in bloom at the time. During the course of the event, May to the
end of August a garden trail led visitors to the most exceptional
areas and plants. The fictional character King Amaryllo engaged
children during this activity as he does in other children-focused
events at the Garden.
Balatkas, the small glasshouse built by Alphonse Balat in 1854.

31 .
Photo Paul Borremans.

<
 Tourism business plan:
‘Botanic Garden Meise 2.0’

Botanic Garden Meise has been awarded a grant of €2.9 million

to develop a number of actions set out in ‘Botanic Garden Meise
2.0’, an ambitious tourism business plan. The central objective is
to give a clearer narrative and increased value that will raise the
profile of our Garden for national and foreign visitors. The plan
highlights a number of targeted investments on infrastructure and
thematic gardens. The Garden’s narrative will be profiled based on
five storylines:

1) An estate rich in history

The recorded history of the site occupied by Botanic Garden

Meise dates back to the 12th century. A former royal residence, it
comprises valuable landscapes and buildings, including a pictur-
esque castle. Within the Garden, visitors will have the opportunity
to explore the evolution from medieval medicinal gardens to the
romance conjured by its English landscape from the 19th century.

2) A garden celebrating plants on Earth

Experience 18,000 different types of plant life from our planet’s

biomes in one Garden. The Plant Palace, a glasshouse complex
from the 1958 Expo comprises the flora of deserts, tropical rain-
forests and more temperate regions, whereas those tolerant to the
Belgian climate flourish outdoors. The narrative highlights plant
adaptations that aid their survival in their natural environment.

3) A taste of Flanders (the Flemish shaped interna-

tional food culture)

Important crops like potatoes, cocoa, coffee and chicory have

little in common botanically... except they owe much of their cur-
rent popularity to Belgian horticulture. The Orangery garden and
tropical glasshouses will highlight their fascinating stories detail-
ing where Flemish horticulture has shaped food culture interna-
tionally.

4) Green excellence (horticultural finesse)

Belgian horticulture has a rich past and remains important today

exporting plants, such as Ghent azaleas, tuberous begonias, lau-
rels, roses and bromeliads. Botanic Garden Meise showcases the
historical and recent activities in horticulture.

5) Safeguarding life in our ‘Green Ark’

(research & nature conservation)

A visit to Botanic Garden Meise gives an insight to our pioneer-

ing scientific activities. To showcase this important work we are
developing new 7,100m2 glasshouse complex called the ‘Green
Ark’. It will comprise of research collections such as bananas, cof-
fee and beans and have an exhibition area to inform visitors of our
activities and house our seedbank. Close by is Wild Meise, the part
of our Garden managed as a nature reserve, where we encourage
our natural flora and fauna.

32 .
Visualisation of the five storylines
of Botanic Garden Meise.

>
Initial illustration of the intended bog garden.
Illustration by Jan de Beck.
Central to the tourism initiative is the development of a contem-
porary entrance building and surroundings with facilities to wel-
< come a large and diverse range of visitors. In order to develop the
five storylines described above a number of actions are planned.

Action 1: Build a ‘state-of-the-art’ visitor’s centre

All necessary visitor facilities will be provided in an architec-

turally modern, fully accessible building that also serves as the
regional tourist information centre for the Green Belt, the region
surrounding Belgium’s capital Brussels that boasts magnificent
Sketch of terraces for the mediterranean and cloud forest glass-houses.

castles, parks and gardens.

Action 2: Develop the Welcome Garden

The Welcome Garden provides an appetiser. The visitor will be

able to sample seasonal highlights and be introduced to the five
storylines of our Garden. The journey through garden history, for
example, will begin in this area with a medieval, medicinal garden.

Action 3: Amplify our Garden’s historic elements

Illustration Marc Reynders.

Our sites historic diversity lends itself to showcasing different

period styles. This action will realise a formal garden associated
with the castle and a bog garden designed in the Romantic style
on an island.

Action 4: Achieve a culinary experience garden

< The walled garden of the Orangery will dovetail the culinary ex-
perience of the adjoining restaurant where food and drink can be
enjoyed. This garden intends to link what you eat with the plants
that provide that meal.

Action 5: Complete the restoration of the Plant Palace

There remains two glasshouses in the Plant Palace to restore.

These will showcase vegetation from cloud forests and the Medi-
terranean biome. Completion of this work will see the culmination
of renovation work that began over a decade ago.

Action 6: Celebrate and strengthen Flemish horticulture

The wealth of our plant collections will highlight and increase

awareness of our Flemish horticultural heritage. This will be
achieved through targeted planting throughout our Garden.

Action 7: Promote our achievements in interactive displays

Through state-of-the-art interactive displays visitors will gain

33 .
insight into the importance and prominence of Botanic Garden
Meise’s scientific work and associated achievements.

The five storylines will be deployed using the seven actions

above. The outcome will enhance visitor experiences within Bo-
tanic Garden Meise and be inclusive for young, old, amateur and
professional. It will also highlight the importance of our Garden on
the national and international stages, raise awareness and increase
visitor numbers to the surrounding area. Our target by 2024 is to
double annual current visitor numbers to quarter of a million.
 Pulses are an important food source worldwide.
Pulses in the picture

Photo Franck Hidvégi.

The United Nations declared 2016 as the International Year of
Pulses. This provided an excellent opportunity for us to create a
small exhibition in the glasshouses highlighting these important
and versatile plants.

The most commonly used pulses were grown and displayed to- >
gether with their edible products. Displays gave information on
their regions of domestication and on culinary use. In addition,
their importance as environmental-friendly protein providers and
as fixers of atmospheric nitrogen were detailed. These issues were
explained in the contexts of an increasing human population and
changing climate.

Amongst the most eye-catching plants were crop wild-relatives

and a colourful collection of Phaseolus beans that we borrowed

The amazing diversity of cultivated beans.

from a local organisation ‘Belle Epoque’ in Meise.

To help stimulate the public’s interaction with the exhibit we in-

vited visitors to take part in a competition with questions about
these plants and their use. The winners received a cooking book
on pulses.
Photo Guy Dirix.

>

Forest Online

Pupils from secondary schools visited Botanic Garden Meise to

investigate the impact of trees on the climate using the ‘internet
of things’, a concept where objects are linked digitally to each
other and can communicate. Children gathered data from wireless
sensors installed in different locations as part of the Bos Online
project. The project was possible as a result of a unique collabora-
tion between RVO-Society, Botanic Garden Meise, the high-tech
research centre imec and the University of Leuven, with financial
support from Flemish Government.

The Bos Online project is coordinated by RVO-Society, an or-

ganisation which aims to bring youngsters into contact with sci-
ence and engineering. It also develops teaching materials based
Minister Muyters in our Garden for the launch of

on recent developments in ‘science, technology, engineering and

mathematics’ (STEM). The Botanic Garden provided the location,
imec the technology, and the University of Leuven the scientific
input. Scientists also developed the data capture system or data-
the Bos Online project (21 Sep).

base, as well as the methods for statistical analysis for the huge
34 . amount of data amassed. Scientists from another faculty devised
Photo Paul Borremans.

the research questions and objectives. Two installations with dif-

ferent sensors and solar panels (for charging the batteries) are lo-
cated in the Garden near to the A12 road. One is situated in an open
field, the other under trees. The sensors are connected by a wire-
less network that transmits measurements such as meteorological
data, pollution variables and characteristics of growth, such as <
sap flow and stem width. Data from these variables are stored on
a cloud server, which is available to teachers and pupils to utilise
and analyse data. The Bos Online project allows children to carry
out their own specific research and will continue for several years,
offering a unique program of hands-on activities in the Garden.
 The Titan arums bloom again in 2016

If there is one plant that has caught the imagination of the Bel-
gian public in recent years it is the titan arum, Amorphophallus tita-
num. Its flower, technically an inflorescence (collection of flowers)
is the largest in the plant kingdom, smells of rotting flesh and is
only open for around 48 hours. Since it first bloomed in Belgium
at Botanic Garden Meise in 2008, the Belgian public have been
treated to an additional five performances. In 2016, two plants
The titan arum caused a real stink when it flowered in March.

flowered. The first appeared in March reaching 145cm in height

with its characteristic purple spadix followed by a specimen in July
which had a yellowish spadix. This specimen reached a colossal
237cm tall and was from seeds that were sown at Ghent University
Botanic Garden.

Flowering can be such a traumatic event for the plant they may
die straight after, but the two specimens of 2016 have both pro-
duced a single leaf that will grow to the size of a small tree before
Photo Franck Hidveghi.

flowering once more.

>

TV series

In 2016, Botanic Garden Meise took part in a TV series focused

on the garden titled 'Geschikt (Arranged) in Meise' on the Flem-
ish and Brussels channel PlattelandsTV. This channel brings audi-
ences a variety of topics focusing on outdoor pursuits such as, ag-
riculture, horticulture, and the passion for gardens in their section
‘Country Life’. The series comprise eight episodes of 20 minutes
presented by Lies Martens.

Each episode was divided in two halves; the first focused on a

different part of the Garden where a botanist toured with a pro-
Koen Es presenting Wild Meise to Jan Godemont

fessional floral artist to gain inspiration from different plant col-

lections. The areas visited included the rose collection, Desert
in the 5th episode of 'Geschikt in Meise'.

House, arum collection, carnivorous plants and Wild Meise where

native plants flourish. In the second part of the program, the flo-
ral artist set to work in the Castle developing a creation on the
theme of the episode, under those people who enjoy international
Photo PlattelandsTV.

repute for their skills in arranging flowers, such as Ilse Beunen,

Stijn Simaeys and Tom De Houwer. The eight episodes were aired
initially in spring and repeated in autumn. PlattelandsTV is a TV
channel with a growing audience that currently has more than a
million viewers each month. For Botanic Garden Meise, such ini-
< tiatives help to promote the Garden and increase the awareness of
its activities.
Martens in the first episode of 'Geschikt in Meise'.
Floral artist Annick Mertens and presenter Lies

35 .
Photo PlattelandsTV.

<
 Season festivals celebrating
plants proves a success

Botanic Garden Meise has much to offer all year round. In each
season, visitors can discover new plants and picturesque places at
their best. To promote the seasons more effectively, the Public Re-
lations and Education team chose to develop themes based on its
established festival concept known as the ‘Floridylle’. The success

A raft crossing the Castle Pond.

of these events are based on a fixed format namely: activities for
visitors who want to learn; children's activities; exhibitions; and a

Photo Paul Borremans.

performance that acts as a crowd-puller.

The spring festival’s highlights included an activity where chil-

dren painted eggs using natural vegetable dyes derived from
onion, red cabbage and turmeric. By this method 300 eggs were
decorated. Positioned in the courtyard of the Pachthof was a giant >
bird's nest for children to play in, while in the Castle, there was an
exhibition entitled 'Garden of Eden'. The public were also encour-
aged to create pots from newspaper and to sow herb and vegetable
seeds for the summer Floridylle.

The summer’s Floridylle celebrated, among other things, the

United Nations’ International Year of Pulses with a series of cook-
ing workshops utilising different peas and beans. Hammocks were
hung in some of the garden’s trees tempting visitors to take the
weight off their feet and relax for a while. For the children, the
woods near the Orangery became an adventure area where the
surroundings could be enjoyed through play. Perhaps the most
memorable activity was the erecting of the longest picnic table
in the world, which was officially measured by an adjudicator on
the first weekend of the festival. It totalled 300m and was used
throughout the summer festival. At that event the young and

Eggs painted using natural vegetable dyes.

young-at-heart were encouraged to hunt for the numerous Poké-
mon characters that reside within the Garden.

The autumn Floridylle took place during spectacular weather. Photo Manon van Hoye.
Visitors were able to choose from many activities. These included
a guided walk to explore the folklore of trees and an opportunity
for children to hollow out pumpkins and make them into lanterns,
which eventually totalled 500! The Castle pond became the site of
a small hand-pulled rope ferry that carried passengers from one
side to the other. In the courtyard of the Pachthof, chestnuts gath-
ered from the Garden, were roasted. This provided many nostal- <
gic moments for visitors. The festival’s feature performance was
an Evening of Horror at the castle, where ‘ghosts came to life’.
This event was hugely popular and supported by over 1,200 visi-
tors. Autumn is a very pictorial season with the changing of leaf
colour and berries. Consequently, visitors were asked to send
36 .
their most beautiful autumn photo taken in the Garden as part of
a photographic competition. More than 60 people took part and
the images used in a wonderful photo exhibition in the Castle dur-
ing December. The entries gave the judging panel a difficult job to
Children blowing giant bubbles.

select the best.

Photo Peter Lanckmans.

Looking back on the year the Floridylles were very successful.

They helped to increase visitor number and also the public’s in-
teraction with the Garden. We hope to repeat the success in 2017.

<
 A night for families proves
a resounding success

The Garden falls silent on the clink of the gates as they close each

The dance performance during the Wonder Weekend.

evening, yet for the first time there was an opportunity for families
to remain and enjoy a night as the Garden came to life as part of a
family-focused festival called Wonder Weekend.

This landmark event occurred during the penultimate weekend

of the summer vacation and attracted 483 children and 456 parents
who spent the night in cardboard tents. Family festivals, or occa-
sions where families with young children can spend quality time

Photo Paul Borremans.

together, seems still quite rare in our country. That was why Bo-
tanic Garden Meise was asked by the organisers of Wonder Week-
end to cooperate and to let the festival happen within its grounds.

It was a great success. Families had the wonderful experience of

< spending the night in the Garden but also had the opportunity for
a unique range of experiences. These included eating in the restau-
rant without utensils, and the chance to experience the Vespaqua,
the world’s smallest but most exciting mobile bathtub. There were
crazy bikes to ride, zorbing across the castle pond, a playground
full of outdoor family games and hammocks for relaxation. As
The Vespaqua, an opportunity to bathe on the move!

the evening became night there was a vertical dance performance

on walls of the castle’s tower followed by a torchlight procession
through the domain and an opportunity to look through a tel-
escope to view distant stars and sing songs around the campfire.
The overwhelming success of the event has ensured that 2017 will
see a repeat performance of this Wonder Weekend.
Photo Paul Borremans.

<

An increasing social role

for botanic gardens

Botanic gardens are where you find a rich diversity of plants. We

are interested in also increasing the social diversity of visitors to
the Garden and the ability of the site and staff to accommodate
their needs. Activities need to be inclusive providing equality for
disabled and disadvantaged groups. Fortunately, this is a growing
phenomenon that can be seen not only at Meise but in many other
botanic gardens throughout the world.

Our Garden regularly organises socially inclusive initiatives,

People arriving at the KVG Family Day.

some are permanent installations while others occur on demand.

The Garden works with a number of organisations to ensure the
gardens are accessible to all. One such is the ‘KVG’, an umbrella
organisation for people living with disabilities of all types in Flan- 37 .
ders. On Saturday 23rd April, 2016 around two thousand people
Photo Ilse Versaen.

with disabilities and their companions enjoyed a beautiful day

in the Garden. Guides, volunteers and local youth associations
provided assistance with numerous activities and tours on offer.
These included a guided tour for the blind and another with a sign
> language interpreter for the deaf so that were no obstacles on this
special day. The successful family day out was graced by Flemish
singer songwriter Bart Kaëll who closed with a much appreciated
concert. Thanks to the excellent cooperation between Botanic
Garden Meise, KVG, Meise municipality and the local police, the
whole event went smoothly from beginning to end.
 Belgium and Japan celebrate
friendship through Ikebana

In 2016, Japan and Belgium marked the 150th anniversary of diplo-

matic relations. In both countries a number of anniversary events
were held over the year in the fields of politics, economics, science
and technology, culture, art, academia, education and sports. The
friendship between the two countries is based on the result of peo-
ple-to-people exchanges, consequently, the Embassy of Japan in
Belgium focused on events with exchanges. Botanic Garden Meise
welcomed the Japanese artist Mrs. Rumiko Hagiwara, who built
the installation ‘Fake Wind’ in the Hunting Pavilion. This piece of

Mr. Hiroki Ohara, Fifth Headmaster of the Japanese

art was a part of an exhibition called ‘Made in Japan’ at the cultural
centre in Stombeek.

Ohara School demonstrating Ikebana.

On October 2nd, Botanic Garden Meise had the great honour to
welcome Mr Hiroki Ohara from Japan to give a masterclass on
Ikebana flower arrangements. Mr Hiroki Ohara is fifth Headmas-

Photo Embassy of Japan.

ter of the Ohara School of Ikebana International in Tokyo, Japan.
The event attracted Mr Masafumi Ishii, the Japanese Ambassador
to Belgium, delegates from the Belgian School for Ikebana (Ohara
style) and Ikebana enthusiasts from all over Europe.

<

Our participation in
the Ghent Floralies festival

One of the most important events of the horticultural calendar

is the Ghent Floralies. This event established in 1809 is where the
latest trends are displayed via inspirational gardens, floral crea-
tions and workshops. The ten day exhibition (22nd April to 1st May)
always draws huge numbers of visitors, both from within and be-
yond Belgium. The Association of Botanical Gardens and Arbo-
reta of Belgium (VBTA) contributed to the 2016 event to raise the
profile of botanic gardens in Belgium. A motto was established:
‘Ten days of Ghent Floralies, 365 days of botanical gardens’ that
helped promote the event.

Discussions on how to catch the eye of the public decided upon a

four metre tall sculpture of a titan arum planted with groundcover
plants of a colour that matched the real titan arum. The reason
behind this selection was that the public associate both Botanic
Sculpture of the titan arum at the Ghent Floralies.

38 . Garden Ghent and Botanic Garden Meise with this plant through
media attention when this plant is in bloom. The botanical sculp-
ture, which was situated in the orangery of the Botanic Garden of
Ghent was achieved by Botanic Garden Meise staff in association
with gardeners from Ghent.
Photo Koen Es.

>
 Realising
state-of-the-art
visitor & research
infrastructure
Botanic Garden Meise is situated in a historic landscape
of 92 hectares whose history dates back to the early Mid-
dle Ages. The domain is home to more than 50 buildings,
including underground ice cellars, tropical greenhous-
es, a medieval castle and various research and service
buildings. Due to lack of investment in the infrastruc-
ture of the Botanic Garden for several decades, most
buildings are in a very poor condition and renovations
are required. We aim to sustainably preserve the scien-
tific collections, which enjoy high international repu-
tation, and create an attractive research environment.
There will also be investment to improve the entrances
so that Botanic Garden Meise further strengthens its in-
ternational position both as a research institution and as
a tourist destination.

39 .
 Five proposals for a new visitor centre
for Botanic Garden Meise

To help promote Botanic Garden Meise and welcome national

and international visitors to the area it is necessary to develop a
comfortable multi-purpose building at each of our two entrances,
Main Entrance (Nieuwelaan) and Meise Village Entrance on (Brus-
selsesteenweg).

At the same time the old farmstead, situated near the Main En-
trance, requires restoration and sympathetic re-development to
accommodate a multi-purpose room, guest accommodation for
visiting scientists and a caretaker’s residence.

In our quest to find a suitable solution an architectural design

contest was issued in collaboration with the Flemish Government
Architect and Flemish Building Agency.

Incorporation of new visitor facilities in a protected historical

landscape made this contest particularly challenging. Architects
were invited to submit designs through an Open Call made by the
Flemish Government Architect. Each design company then inter-
preted the specifications in their own unique ways. The concepts

Drawing of Main Entrance.

of the five shortlisted submissions are summarised briefly below:

TV Monadnock, Posad.
TV Monadnock, Posad <

Designers developed the concept of a hemispherical Welcome

Plaza, or meeting area at the Main Entrance. Visitors travel from
the curved reception building down a central walkway to the par-
allel, cobbled driveway (Eredreef) and from there into the heart of
the Garden. This design stamps a definite landmark with strong
visibility beyond. At the Meise Village Entrance a more intimate,
contemporary building is proposed constructed next to the prin-
cipal axis that allows extended views deep into the Garden.

Ground plan of Main Entrance.

TV Monadnock, Posad.
<
Position of Main Entrance in relation to existing
buildings and landscape.
TV Monadnock, Posad.

40 .

<
TV Monadnock, Posad.
Meise Entrance.

>
 TV ae-architectural, Carton 123 Architects &
Murmuur Architects

A venture between three architectural firms developed their

concept on ‘outdoor rooms’. The visitor passes through a wall
symbolising change from a chaotic world to the serene environ-
ment of the Garden. The wall forms a U-shaped outdoor room,
one side open to the Garden. There are several walkways, one
leading into the cobbled inner courtyard of the old farmstead
(Vlaamse Hoeve), which in winter is especially welcoming due
to a glowing fire from an existing fireplace. Once in the Garden
pathways lead along the linear drive (Eredreef) or meanders into
the garden beckoning the visitor to explore. The Meise Village en-

TV ae-architectural, Carton 123 Architects &

trance building has a similar theme to the Main Entrance, incorpo-
rating an existing historic wall into the design.

Exerpt from design proposal.

Murmuur Architects.
<

TV ae-architectural, Carton 123 Architects &

View on rehabilitated old farmstead.

Murmuur Architects.

> Position of Main Entrance in relation to existing buildings and landscape.

TV ae-architectural, Carton 123 Architects & Murmuur Architects.

41 .

<
 TV Atelier Veldwerk, Bogdan & Van Broeck Architects,
Impression of the inside of the entrance building.

Origin Architecture & Engineering.

<

TV Atelier Veldwerk, Bogdan & Van Broeck

Architects, Origin Architecture & Engineering

This proposal radically renews and engages different relation-

ships with the surroundings and links both Garden entrances. A
flexible glasshouse and boardwalk construction links the Main
Entrance with Meise Village Entrance 800m away. The link cre-
ates a meditative pathway hugging the green edge of the Garden.

TV Atelier Veldwerk, Bogdan & Van Broeck Architects, Origin

Its clever design offers the possibility to extend its development
in the future, for example, with respect to the proposed tramway

Old farmstead integrated with new architecture.

in 2020 and the Garden’s car park. The design could also comple-
ment future infrastructure in the park, such as the new glasshouse
complex.

Architecture & Engineering.

<
Architects, Origin Architecture & Engineering.
TV Atelier Veldwerk, Bogdan & Van Broeck

42 .
Visualisation of Main Entrance.

>
 TV aNNo Architects,
URA – Yves Malysse Kiki Verbeeck

Initially, the designers did not look for a building, but for a way
to express the right experience and moment. This is realised at the
Main Entrance where the core of the building is an open circular
space, or nucleus. It is positioned on the drive (Eredreef) to accen-
tuate this historic path’s architectural strength. The circle works
like an attraction. The new reception building becomes almost in-
visible nestled in the green perimeter of the park and at the same
height as the surrounding landscape. The build aims to straddle
the different styles of building found within the park. The en-
trance Meise Village has the same features as the Main Entrance
but on a more diminutive scale. It also accentuates strong sight-
lines that take in the castle and other viewpoints.
View of the interiour of the Main Entrance.

URA – Yves Malysse Kiki Verbeeck.

TV aNNo Architects,

>
URA – Yves Malysse Kiki Verbeeck.
Visualisation of Meise Entrance
TV aNNo Architects,

>
Sketches and Maquette of Main Entrance.

URA – Yves Malysse Kiki Verbeeck.

TV aNNo Architects,

43 .

>
URA – Yves Malysse Kiki Verbeeck.
Sight of the main drive (Eredreef).
TV aNNo Architects,

>
 Position of Main Entrance in relation to existing buildings and landscape.
NU Architectuuratelier.

>

NU Architectuuratelier

Visitors encounter the Garden via a Welcome Plaza, a beautiful

multifunctional space to begin exploration. A simple and flexible
structure is proposed, structuring the space and accentuating the
landscape. The view from the park on arrival is found at the cen-
tre of the Plaza; a window onto the Garden. Incorporated within
the Main Entrance is the shop, information point, offices and other
facilities you would expect in a state-of-the-art reception area.
Beyond the reception the visitor encounters a Welcome Garden
bordered by the drive (Eredreef) providing definite structure. The
Meise Entrance also serves as a multifunctional building, but at
a smaller scale to the Main Entrance and affords stunning views
of the Garden beyond. The Garden selected this design due to its
harmonious dialogue with the landscape and existing buildings
and the design’s flexibility.

View on welcome plaza.

NU Architectuuratelier.

<

44 .
Visualisation of Main Entrance.
NU Architectuuratelier.

<
 >
>

Three-dimensional representation of Main Entrance building. Maquette of structural element used in the new buildings.
NU Architectuuratelier. NU Architectuuratelier.

<
Visualisation of Meise Entrance.
NU Architectuuratelier.

45 .
 A new Green Ark to safeguard
research and conservation collections

Botanic Garden Meise currently has two glasshouse complexes.

These comprise over 40 small interconnected glasshouses used for
propagation, conservation of endangered species and cultivation
of research and orangery collections. Built in the 1930s and 1950s,
most are in a very bad state and some have collapsed. Heating a
large number of small glasshouses is very inefficient on energy us-
age and the growing conditions for the plants are not optimal.

Consequently, our Garden plans to develop a new glasshouse

complex to be known as the ‘Green Ark’. It will be around 7,100m2
and include a multi-purpose room where the scientific work of our
Garden can be explained and demonstrated. An existing building
will adjoin the complex and after renovation will house the seed-
bank and offices. The total budget for the project is €10.4 million
(excluding taxes and fees). In collaboration with the Flemish Build-
ing Agency, the Garden launched a European tender to find an ar-

Aerial visualisation of new glasshouse complex.

chitect team. Five teams were selected to develop a full proposal
of which one declined. The four plans received were high quality.

B-architects

Photo B-architects.
The new glasshouse is approached as an enclosed garden. A
brick wall encloses the entire complex. A public path at the east
side gives the visitors insight in the activities within the green-
houses. The multipurpose room is situated at the corner; on the
other side, an outlook point permits visitors to oversee the entire <
greenhouse complex.

LOW Architects

Aerial visualisation of new glasshouse complex.

The architects create a plaza that harbours the new glasshouse
complex and adjoining service building. The plaza connects the
different functions and visitors can stroll around and discover the
different elements. The multipurpose room is situated opposite
the service building, which houses the seed bank that is visible for

Photo LOW Architects.

the visitors.

OFFICE Kersten Geers David Van Severen

<
This team optimally uses the topography of the terrain to de-
sign a glasshouse complex with a continuous roof. As a result, it
figures as a single entity that integrates well with the surrounding
buildings and landscape. The multi-purpose room is situated at the
heart of the glasshouse complex.
Photo OFFICE Kersten Geers David Van Severen.

46 .
Side view of glasshouse complex.

>
Photo Temporary association NU and ar-te.
Exerpt from design proposal.
Temporary association NU and ar-te

The design team aims at combining the scientific purposes of the

new buildings with a qualitative access for the visitors. A public
pavilion is surrounded by the glasshouses and gives room for in-
terpretative panels as well as temporary exhibitions. The seedbank
< is made visible for visitors, providing an additional attraction. Bo-
tanic Garden Meise has chosen this design because of the excel-
lent integration in the existing landscape, the attractiveness for the
visitors, and the functionality of the greenhouses.

Photo Temporary association NU and ar-te.

Side view of glasshouse complex.

<

47 .
 An architectural adventure trail was installed in
the canopy glasshouse during 2016.
Photo Marc Reynders.
<

Landscaping the
new rainforest glasshouses

Restoration of the infrastructure and planting in the Plant Palace

has been a major undertaking in recent years. The tropical biome,

Planting plan for the glasshouse of Central Africa.

which takes up the entire north wing, became the current focus for
this work. A linear trail is planned that will take visitors on an east-
west journey through five glasshouses festooned with lush, tropi-
cal rainforest. Since 2014, two tropical glasshouses have welcomed
visitors to displays of ethnobotanic species and secondary rainfor-
est plants, Soon, the remaining three glasshouses of the north

Photo Marc Reynders.

wing will be completed showing primary rainforest and palms, the
rainforest canopy and displays devoted to the vegetation of Cen-
tral Africa. In 2016, attention was targeted on the Canopy House,
where epiphytes and climbers will reside. This display house has
two trails. The first is a slightly inclined central causeway that se-
duces the onlooker to discover the abundance of life in the tree- <
tops. The second is an ambitious, elevated walkway three meters
in the air where architectural and botanical adventures can begin.
Inspiration for its intricate design was developed by LOW archi-
tects of Antwerp who studied fine leaf venation found in tropical
plants. This 30m trail is accessible from an existing stairwell in an
adjacent 16m high glasshouse. The journey begins on the aerial
walkway with a multifunctional terrace for enjoying the view or
for use as a teaching area for school groups. From this area visitors’
zigzag through the canopy passing both living and artificial trees
swathed with a rich diversity of plants, such as orchids, bromeli-
ads, ferns and mosses.

The elevated walkway comprises alternating meshed square

tiles made from wood and metal creating an open, light feel to the
trail and allows light to penetrate from below. The delicate feel of
the walkway is enforced by meandering handrails spanned with
metal webbing giving an impression of the sides of a rope bridge.
To maintain the lightness of the design, large concrete foundations
were out of the question and would have substantially reduced the
planting area. The solution was to install 27 slender uprights driven
into the ground to a depth of six meters. This provided the walk-
way with structural integrity capable of bearing 500kg per metre
squared. The adventurer leaves the humid tree tops by descending
a winding staircase that leads back to terra firma.

48 . Work in 2016 also involved developing planting plans and pre-

Planting in the glasshouse of Central Africa.

paring the site for planting. Botanic Garden Meise is fortunate to

have an excellent collection of rainforest species, especially woody
plants. It was therefore necessary to perform careful analysis to
select the most interesting. As rainforests typically comprise mul-
tiple canopy layers, we wanted to reflect this in our glasshouses.
Photo Marc Reynders.

This was best achieved by planting each layer separately taking

into account the natural ecology of the species. In this way we will
create scenes that are both balanced and natural that will reveal the
wonders of the rainforest habitat to visitors.

>
 Renovation of service building
for revitalised wood museum

Botanic Garden Meise has a unique wood collection that spans

the 19th and 20th centuries. Part of the collection was displayed in
a Forestery Museum at the Garden’s former location in central
Brussels and focused mainly on the economic importance of wood.

When the Garden relocated to Meise, the collection was stored

in the cellars of the herbarium building and all-but forgotten. In
2014, an ambitious program was launched to restore the collection
and open a new museum in 2018. Finding a location was easy - a
seldom-used service building near the walled garden of the Or-
angery proved suitable and is being transformed into a state-of-
the-art wood museum. This will relate a much broader range of
stories compared to the focus of the former museum. It will in-
clude stories on different aspects of wood, such as functional and
anatomical information, the role of forests in climate regulation,

Wood museum - demolition of the cealing.

information on specific trees and the amazing versatility of this
natural product.

Photo Danny Swaerts.

<

Renewal of the sewerage infrastructure

Botanic Garden Meise is a historic property with a long history.

The site covers a vast area with many scattered buildings and pri-
Preparation work for the new sewer system.

vate roads with a range of utilities that include networks for the
supply of gas, electricity, cabling and various sewer systems. Cer-
tain parts of this infrastructure are very old and no longer meets
today’s needs. An update of the Garden’s sewer system was neces-
sary and so an in-house project was launched in 2016 to modernise
and manage this utility. Our approach was to separate wastewater
Photo Dirk Reusens.

from rainwater, with sewage being diverted to the local sewage

works for treatment and rainwater stored on site for irrigating
plants. This project is part of the broader vision of our Garden to
renew outdated infrastructure over the coming years.
>

49 .
Installation of the new sewer system.
Photo Dirk Reusens.

<
 Organisation
Our Garden is an ever-changing organisation with
about 180 members of staff, more than 100 volunteers
and 20 guides. They join forces to reach the Garden’s
goals and to prepare for future challenges.

50 .
 A new online publication
repository for the Garden

The way scientists retrieve published research has undergone

substantial changes over the past two decades, mainly driven by
advances in information technology. Online environments, such
as e-journals, institutional archives and open-access repositories
are now commonplace and provide fast, broad and often free ac-
cess to scientific information. This trend will continue as there
is a growing tendency in scientific institutions to monitor their
research output by encouraging authors to self-archive their re-
search output.

Our Garden has recently adopted the Pure database. Pure is an

abbreviation of ‘Publication and Research’ and is now used in many
academic organisations worldwide. It is a database that stores
and integrates information on research activity in a structured
and standardised way. Scientists at our Garden are encouraged
to manage their own profiles and post their research output, in-
cluding publications, research projects and conference abstracts.
Currently, over 5,000 titles are included in the database from the
Garden, including 3,765 publications.

In the near future, data from Pure will flow into the FRIS re-
search portal (www.researchportal.be), which will provide perma-
nent and immediate access to the research information of all Flem-
ish universities and scientific institutes. To meet the increasing
demand for research transparency information from Flemish sci-
entific institutions, the FRIS research portal will be Open Access.

The Pure database also allows for analyses of research output,

which can provide interesting insights into publication trends.
The graph below illustrates co-authorship relations based inter-
national peer-reviewed publications of the garden between 2015-
2016. This graph shows our research is firmly embedded in a broad
scientific network, with more than 650 international co-authors.
Although clear research fields can be discriminated in the graph,
the connecting lines are evidence for strong internal collabora-
tions between different groups. Expansion of these scientific net-
works (both external and internal) are important as they result in
improved transfer of knowledge and experience, which can take
research programs of the Garden in new directions.
Bibliometric network of the Garden based on A1 publications from 2015-2016, showing
co-authorship relations. Nodes correspond to authors, edges between nodes mark

51 .
joint publications.

>
 Weed control and
leaf removal in the Garden:
a social and ecological approach

Botanic Garden Meise considers its core values ‘sustainability’

and ‘respect for diversity’ paramount. At the start of 2016, we be-
gan a public tender procedure for a social enterprise company to
control weeds on our paved areas and to collect fallen leaves in au-
tumn. A major stipulation was that this work had to comply with
our policy banning the use of herbicides that came into force in
2015. Weed control without herbicides requires alternative meth-
ods and a change in expectations.

Gradually, our employees and visitors will get used to a more

relaxed approach to weeding. However, weed control varies de-
pending on where weeds need to be controlled. Those spontane-
ously occurring in cultivated areas require knowledge and vigi-
lance from our experienced gardeners, whereas controlling those
in our pathways and roads is a less skilled job and suitable for social
enterprise.

The social enterprise BWBouchout won the contract for this

work for two years with the possibility of renewal to four years.
This company distinguishes itself by employing people with spe-
cial needs and abilities.

In addition to weed control the company undertook the collec-

tion and removal of leaves from paved areas and lawns during au-
tumn. This meant that we could rely on a manual workforce rather
than on heavy machines that would compact the soil under the
trees, cause excess noise and increase our use of fossil fuel. This
solution was more ecological for the Garden and did not disturb
our visitors.

The gardening teams of BWBouchout visit on a regular basis to

weed an area of 15,400m2 and to collect leaves over 36.8ha. This
gives the opportunity to BWBouchout to provide job security
and competency development to its staff while Botanic Garden
Meise implements a social and environmentally-friendly policy
for maintaining the domain.

52 .
Employees of BWBouchout gathering leaves
in Botanic Garden Meise.
Photo Kenny Stevens.

<
 Taking care of the welfare
of our employees

For the first time staff at Botanic Garden Meise participated in

an employee survey, organised by the Flemish Government every
two years. The ‘Employee Survey 2016’ took place between May
and June and was conducted mainly online. Over the region 13,600
staff took part from 50 agencies and departments.

The study allows a measure of employee satisfaction working

across different services of Flemish Government. It also provides
the possibility to compare results and shows how staff and their
managers perceive their working life. The results were included in
a report and serve as a basis for potential improvement and change
through human resource planning.

The survey was delivered as a questionnaire with 46 questions

divided into themes. These included employee’s perception of
their: general satisfaction at work; well-being within the job; their
salary; direct working environment; career; and managers.

From the Garden 177 Dutch- and French-speaking employees

were invited to answer questions. In total 64% of employees (114
participants) responded providing a slightly higher response rate
compared to the average response (59%).

The survey revealed that generally employees are satisfied with

their work and enjoy the content of their job, which they consider
meaningful for society. They also have the impression that their
work is evaluated fairly by management. The survey also high-
lighted some points for improvement. Staff felt cooperation within
teams could be better and that there should be greater respect for
rules and regulations. They also underlined their concern that op-
portunities for promotion were currently inadequately served.

The final question of the survey asked: ‘Do you like working for
Botanic Garden Meise?’ For this the Garden received a very high
score. The type of information gathered in this survey is invalu-
able for the success of our Garden and allows managers to target
particular areas and perceptions.
Bruce Robertson of Royal Botanic Garden

Exchanging skills and experience:

Edinburgh with two of our gardeners.

gardeners go international
Photo Guillaume Mamdy.

The living collections of Botanic Garden Meise comprise an

overwhelming diversity of species from all over the world. To
care, nurture and maintain these vast collections, the Garden
relies on an experienced team of gardeners with a wide range of
specialisations. An important way to develop these is through the
> exchange of skills and experience. In this context, 13 gardeners
went on foreign missions during 2016 to other botanic institutes.
Our gardeners visited three countries, these included: six garden-
ers going on a day trip to the University of Bonn Botanic Garden
(Germany); three gardeners visiting the Royal Botanic Garden Ed-
inburgh (UK) for nine days; and one gardener visiting the Botanic
Garden of Nantes (France) for a week. In addition, two gardeners
participated in the conference of the International Carnivorous
Plant Society at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew (UK), combined
with a visit to their collections. Last but not least, one of our gar- 53 .
Our gardeners working with colleagues from

deners was invited as a judge at the Courson-Chantilly Plant Fair

the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.

in France.

A fascinating aspect of our living collections is that they are

Photo Guillaume Mamdy.

constantly evolving. This is dependent on a range of diverse cir-

cumstances including: current scientific and educational needs
and opportunities; new horticultural techniques; changing legisla-
tions; new phytosanitary issues; and on a changing climate. The
exchange of knowledge with other gardens ensures that the gar-
deners are best prepared for new opportunities and help refine and
> elaborate their specialist skills and knowledge.
 In memoriam
of Daniel Geerinck (1945-2016)

Trained as a botanist, student of Paul Duvigneaud and Jean Léo-

nard, Daniel Geerinck was an inquisitive person, interested in
many disciplines (dendrology, ornithology, herpetology, environ-
ment protection, genealogy and cinema). He published 796 notes,
papers and books between 1967 and 2016 on many different sub-
jects of which half concerned botanical science.

Independently from his career of professor of biology in second-

ary school, at which he inspired many of his students to go into
biological science, he conducted most of his research activities
both at the Laboratory of Systematic Botany and Phytosociology
at the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and at the Department
of Spermatophytes and Pteridophytes at National Botanic Garden
of Belgium (now Botanic Garden Meise), where most of his 7,000
herbarium specimens from Belgium and France reside.

Daniel Geerinck will be remembered for his substantial contri-

bution to the Flora of Central Africa (12 families including the two
volumes on the orchid family for which he received two prizes: the
Émile De Wildeman Prize of the Royal Belgian Botanical Society
and the Émile Laurent Prize of the Belgian Royal Academy of Sci-
ences). He is also known for his other botanical works that include:
description of more than 118 new taxa, mainly from Central Af-
rica; detailed inventory of the cultivated trees of the public roads
of Brussels; and many taxonomic treatments on temperate trees,
especially for the regions flora, the Nouvelle Flore de Belgique, du
Grand-Duché de Luxembourg, du Nord de la France et des régions
Photo Vincent Droissart.

voisines. Last but not least, he was known as a good supervisor to

Daniel Geerinck.

ULB students, sharing his taxonomic skills, aiding their research

and proofreading the manuscripts of young scientists.

Daniel was one of the most prolific Belgian naturalists of his gen-
eration and an inspiration to those around him. He will be sadly >
missed.

In memoriam Pierre Compère

Pierre Compère, former Head of the Department Bryophyta &

Thallophyta, passed away on April 29, 2016 at the age of 81. Pierre
was one of the most renowned algologists of the past 40 years. His
career, which began in the Belgian Congo in 1959 and lasted until
his death in 2016, is enormously rich. As a specialist in not only di-
atoms but also cyanobacteria, euglenophytes, desmids and Char-
aceae, Pierre described over 125 new taxa, including three new
genera. He also published over 100 articles in peer-reviewed jour-
nals. He was president of the French-speaking diatomist group
Pierre Compère studying algae at the microscope.

ADLaF between 1988 and 1999 and, since 1993, secretary of the
54 . committee for algae nomenclature within the International As-
sociation for Plant Taxonomy (IAPT). Aside from these research
activities, Pierre was for over 30 years Editor-in-Chief of the Bul-
letin of the Royal Botanical Society of Belgium (that became the Belgian
Journal of Botany in 1990) and was also a member of the reading
committee on the journal Cryptogamie, Algologie.

Pierre was an inspiration to many young scientists and always

helped them with answers to thousands of questions on algal tax-
Photo APM.

onomy, morphology and nomenclature. He was an example of a

true gentleman-scientist. His kindness, experience and colossal
knowledge of algae will be greatly missed by all who knew him. <
Facts & figures

55 .
 Finances
Financial Result (in K€)
Evolution of self generated income

The available budget for 2016 was 13,884 K€ of which 12,198 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
K€ was used for the financial year in question. In addition 1,686
K€ was committed for works that will be executed in the coming 1,002 1,181 1,288 2,086 2,197
years.

2015 2016
Self generated income

2,500
Acquisitions 12,662 13,884

Expenses 12,530 12,198

2,000
Budgetary year balance 132 1,686

1,500

1,000

Breakdown of financial income (in K€) 500

0
Financial income consisted of 11,687 K€ from the Flemish Gov-
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
ernment and 2,197 K€ in total from self generated income. This in-
ternal income came mostly from projects, consultancy work and
ticket sales. The sales of the shop and webshop increased from 124
K€ in 2015 to 152 K€ in 2016. This can be explained by the success
of the new field guide for the Benelux. Expenditure

Self generated income (K€)

Salary costs accounted for 70% of the total budget in 2016. En-
ergy costs accounted for 4%. For our plant collections, research
Lease 88
activities and public outreach there was, respectively, 677 K€, 253
Entrance fee 454 K€ and 323 K€ available.
Garden shop 152

Staff canteen 37 Expenditure

Projects & consultancy 1,418

Salary 8,490
Orangery concession 25
Collections 677
Insurance 18
Research 253
Sponsorship 4
Public outreach 323
Total 2,197 Overheads 884

Improvements & repairs 998

Energy costs 488

ICT 86
Lease
Total 12,198
Entrance fee

Garden shop
Salary
Staff canteen

Collections
Projects &
56 .
consultancy
Research
Orangery concession

Insurance Public outreach

Sponsorship Overheads

Improvements
& repairs

Energy costs

ICT
 Staff breakdown per income source
(situation on the 1st of January 2016)

The salaries of Botanic Garden staff were funded by income aris-

ing from the Flemish Community (124 staff members, 69%), from
the French Community (30 staff members, 17%), and from own re-
sources (26 staff members, 14%).

2014 2015 2016

Flemish Community 129 125 124

French Community 31 31 30
Own income 27 25 26

Total 187 181 180

2014 2015 2016

140

120

100

Staff 80

60

Overview of staff 40

(situation on 20
the 1st of January for each year)
0
Flemish French Own income
Community Community
The number of personnel (including temporary staff)
dropped to 180.

2013 2014 2015 2016

Staff breakdown
Statutory scientists 13 21 20 22 per community and function
Statutory non-scientists 81 92 92 91
(situation on the 1st of January 2016)
Contractual scientists 18 13 13 12
Contractual non-scientists 69 61 56 55

Total 181 187 181 180 About 19% of the personnel are scientists of which the French
Community finances a third. The French Community also pays for
18 persons (10% of total) that are engaged in other activities of the
Botanic Garden.

2016
2013 2014 2015 2016

100 Scientists French Community 12

90 Scientists Flemish Community 22
80
Non-scientists French Community 18
70
Non-scientists Flemish Community 128
60
50
57 .
40
30 12
(7%) Scientists
20 22 French Community
(12%)
10 Scientists
0 18 Flemish Community
Statutory Statutory Contractual Contractual (10%) Non-scientists
scientists non-scientists scientists non-scientists French Community
128
(71%) Non-scientists
Flemish Community
 French Community
Male Female Total

60-+ 3 1 4

55-59 3 1 4

50-54 4 1 5

45-49 3 2 5

40-44 5 1 6

35-39 3 2 5

30-34 1 0 1

25-29 0 0 0

20-24 0 0 0

Total 22 8 30
Age pyramid
Male Female
More than two thirds of the personnel is older than 40 and more
8 3 2 7
than 40% is older than 50 with 9% older than 60. Approximately
40% of staff is female, but the distribution between the various 60-+
services is very variable, for example most of our gardeners are 55-59
men.
50-54

45-49

All 2016 40-44

35-39
Male Female Total
30-34

25-29
60-+ 11 5 16
20-24
55-59 15 10 25

50-54 20 13 33

45-49 12 14 26

40-44 13 10 23
Flemish Community
35-39 15 7 22

30-34 16 8 24 Male Female Total

25-29 7 2 9
60-+ 8 4 12
20-24 2 0 2
55-59 12 9 21
Total 111 69 180
50-54 16 12 28

45-49 9 12 21

40-44 8 9 17

Male Female
35-39 12 5 17

20 15 10 5 0 5 10 15
30-34 15 8 23

60-+
25-29 7 2 9

55-59 20-24 2 0 2
50-54 Total 89 61 150
45-49

40-44
Male Female
35-39

30-34
15 10 5 0 5 10 15
58 . 25-29
60-+
20-24
55-59

50-54

45-49

40-44

35-39

30-34

25-29

20-24
 Interns and placements

The Garden offers many places for trainees and people seek-
ing work place experience. Our goal is to make them better pre-
pared to take up their place in the labour market. With 31 people in
2016, their number remains stable.

Number of interns and placements

Visitors
Total Paid Unpaid

2014 32 1 31

2015 30 0 27 Number of visits

2016 31 0 31

The number of visits increased in 2016 to 131,995, a new record.

Interns and placements with disability In comparison with 2000, the year when visitor numbers were for
the first time systematically registered, the number of unique visi-
Total Paid Unpaid tors have more than doubled (this figures excludes visits from year
card holders and free visits by the inhabitants of Meise village). We
2014 3 0 3 believe this has been driven by holding numerous events, including
2015 1 0 1
activities to celebrate the different seasons.

2016 0 0 0

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Interns and placements
with migration background Number
of visits 88,612 91,171 126,486 124,781 131,995
Total Paid Unpaid

2014 11 0 11

2015 13 0 13 140,000

2016 12 0 12
120,000

100,000

Volunteers 80,000

60,000

The number of volunteers reached 120 or almost 10 in terms

of fulltime equivalents based on the norm of the Flemish Govern- 40,000
ment (1,520 hours/year). They play a very important role in all
activities of the Botanic Garden: from welcoming visitors to sci- 20,000
entific work.
0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Number 70 98 108 118 120

FTE 5.7 6.7 8.6 10.5 9.6

Evolution one-time visitors

140 12 Linear (Evolution one-time visitors)

250,00
120
10

200,00
100
8 59 .
80 150,00
6

60
100,00
4
Number
40
FTE 50,00
2
20

0,00
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016

0 0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
 Breakdown of the number of visits
(free / reduction / full price)
Participation in
The increase of the number of visits is mainly the result of organised educative visits
people entering the Garden free or at a reduced rate. The number
of visits at the full prices slightly decreased.
The number of school visits increased with 35%. Especially the
increase of the number of workshops is remarkable (+57%).
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Free 30,913 31,368 39,312 39,059 44,048

Reduced 38,215 38,992 57,676 60,339 63,493 Free visit 2,771 3,523 2,467 2,529 3,214

Full 19,484 20,811 29,498 25,383 24,454 Guided visit 1,091 989 1,156 857 992

BAMA-module 551 713 671 566 643

School workshop 1,763 1,127 1,917 2,330 3,658

Free Reduced Full
Total 6,176 6,361 6,211 6,282 8,507
70,000

60,000

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

50,000
4,000
40,000
3,500
30,000
3,000

20,000 2,500

10,000 2,000

0 1,500
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
1,000

500

0
Free visit Guided visit BAMA-module School workshop

Year card subscriptions

The number of year cardholders increased with 7%. The in-

crease of individual year cardholders Gold is noteworthy (+ 25%). Visitors to the Garden Shop

In total almost 6,672 visitors made a purchase in the Garden

shop. Typical Botanic Garden Meise products, such as our Meise
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
honey and Meise coffee remained very popular. The sales of the
new Benelux field guide were also very good.
Individual 1,113 1,443 1,756 1,233 1,278

Gold 100 94 112 213 267

Gold 1+3 384 411 517 673 732

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Total 1,597 1,948 2,385 2,119 2,277

Visitors 4,729 5,189 6,244 6,547 6,672

Individual year card Gold Gold 1+3

3,000
8,000
2,500
7,000
60 . 2,000
6,000

1,500 5,000

1,000 4,000

3,000
500
2,000
0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 1,000

0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
 The Botanic Garden in the news
and social networks

Collections
The Garden issued 21 press releases in 2016. At this moment,
3,830 persons have a subscription with the digital newsletter Musa,
which is published every season in Dutch and French. This is an
increase of more than 30%. On the Facebook page of the Botanic
Garden, 118 messages in Dutch and 106 in French were posted. In Living collections
total 300.000 different visitors consulted our website, good for 1.3
million visits.
The living collections are made up of all accessions for which
are available either as living plants and/or seeds. At this moment it
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 is made up of 32,230 accessions from 18,928 taxa. 89% belongs to
the Federal government scientific patrimony, 11% is the property
Musa of the Flemish Community.
subscriptions 2,640 2,715 3,270 2,880 3,830

Federal Flemish Global

4,500

4,000
Taxa 16,540 2,923 18,479

Species 12,437 2,388 13,701

3,500
Accessions 28,547 3,683 32,230
3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000 Living plant collections

500

0 Currently, the living plant collections are made up of 25,675

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
accessions. They represent 347 families, 3,053 genera, 17,504 taxa
and 12,958 species. They are spread over the greenhouses (55%)
and open park land (45%). The best represented plant families
in the greenhouses are the Cactaceae (2,194 accessions), Orchi-
daceae (1,691), Euphorbiaceae (1,518), Liliaceae (713), Rubiaceae
The number of subscribers to Dumortiera, a digital periodical (559), Araceae (483) and Crassulaceae (465). In the open park col-
for floristry, decreased to 1,022. This is explained by the cleaning- lections, the best representated plant families are Ericaceae (789
up of the database, resulting in deleting duplicates. accessions), Rosaceae (769), Liliaceae (510), Asteraceae (468) and
Malaceae (421).

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Subscribers Dumortiera 643 1,000 1,050 1,205 1,022

Outdoors Indoors Outdoors Indoors Outdoors Indoors
2014 2014 2015 2015 2016 2016
Subscribers Dumortiera

1,400 Taxa 7,887 9,637 7,942 9,667 7,964 9,540

1,200 Species 5,024 7,937 5,015 7,970 5,078 7,880

1,000 Accessions 11,390 14,869 11,391 14,470 11,480 14,195

800

600

400
Outdoors 2014 Indoors 2014 Outdoors 2015
Indoors 2015 Outdoors 2016 Indoors 2016
200
16,000 61 .
0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 14,000

12,000

10,000

8,000

6,000

4,000

2,000

0
Taxa Species Accessions
 Evolution of the acquisition
of living plant material

Even if the number of new acquisitions was relatively low in

2016, substantial increase has to be noted for the collections of
Euphorbiaceae (166 accessions), Orchidaceae (135) and Cactaceae (116).

Cultivated Wild origin Total

The seizure of plant material
2011 1,021 863 1,884 prohibited under CITES
2012 1,631 528 2,159

2013 710 404 1,114

In 2016, the Belgian customs authorities carried out eleven
2014 1,233 465 1,698 confiscations under the international legislation of CITES. Plants
2015 1,440 312 1,752 of seven confiscations, corresponding to 20 introductions, were
introduced in our collection. The plants of the other confiscations
2016 619 244 863
were either destroyed or returned.

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Cultivated Wild origin
3,000 CITES accessions 86 122 43 48 20

2,500
140

2,000 120

1,500 100

1,000 80

60
500
40
0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 20

0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Evolution of queries
entered in LIVCOL

LIVCOL is an in-house databank that is used for the daily

management of the living collections and supporting scientific
documentation. This database is partially accessible via the inter-
net site of the Botanic Garden. The number of queries dropped 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
slightly in 2016.
Number of
confiscations 12 10 10 9 11
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Queries Number of confiscations

LIVCOL 3,734 3,962 5,838 7,602 7,251 14

12

10
Queries LIVCOL
8,000 8

7,000 6
62 .
6,000 4

5,000 2

4,000 0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
3,000

2,000

1,000

0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
 Distribution of living material

The number of plant or seed specimens sent out is slightly be-

ing increased. In 2016 it reached 2,749 specimens; 76 % of them be-
ing seed samples.

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Distribution
material 1,664 1,770 1,830 2,610 2,749

Distribution material

3,000

2,500

Long term seed conservation

2,000

1,500
The seed bank is a very important ex situ conservation tool to
support, in particular in situ conservation projects. It facilitates,
1,000
over a long period of time (more than 100 years), the conservation
of a very broad range of genetic diversity in a very limited area. At
500
this moment, the seed bank of the Botanic Garden conserves some
980 accessions of wild Belgian species, 896 accessions of copper
0
plants from Katanga and 2,149 accessions of wild species of beans.
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Belgian flora Copper flora Wild beans

2012 841 536 2,144

Mounting of herbarium specimens 2013 890 626 2,152

2014 906 803 2,152

2015 949 820 2,152

The mounting of specimens is an important and time-consum-
ing activity that facilitates the long term storage of plant material. 2016 980 896 2,149
The number of mounted specimens decreased in 2016 to 13,000.
This is explained by the fact that our herbarium staff was main-
ly involved in preparing the collections for digitalization for the
DOE! project.
24%
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Belgian flora
Total 18,096 24,311 35,514 20,300 13,000 54% Copper flora
Wild beans
22%

Total

40,000
35,000
30,000
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
25,000
2,500
20,000
15,000
2,000 63 .
10,000
5,000
1,500
0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
1,000

500

0
Belgian flora Copper flora Wild beans
 Databasing the collections

Herbarium specimens hold valuable information about the

distribution, ecology and use of plants. Imaging and databasing
the collections make this information available to interested us-
ers. In 2016 the number of encoded specimens further increased
to 242,937. This high number is the result of ‘rapid databasing’ for
the digitalisation project DOE!

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Total 47,811 75,446 51,037 133,128 242,937

Loans and exchange program

The transfer of herbarium specimens between herbaria world-

total wide is an important step to facilitate botanical research. Speci-
mens can be transferred between herbaria on a temporary basis
300,000 as loans or on a permanent basis as a gift or as part of a speci-
men exchange program.In 2016 there were two important gifts:
250,000
the herbarium of the Free University of Brussels (VUB) and the
herbarium of Leuven. In the annual report of 2015, the number of
200,000
specimens as gift was not correctly reported. The correct number
150,000 is 49,054 instead of 24,054.

100,000

50,000 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

0 Incoming
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 exchange 7,892 15,536 853 2,758 1,919
Incoming
gift 8,591 3,918 7,141 49,054 53,599
Incoming
loan 2,391 678 1,394 904 472
Outgoing
exchange 1,655 1,991 459 183 8,507
Outgoing
gift 175 128 116 132 903
Outgoing
loan 1,701 2,366 2,430 1,719 472

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

60,000

50,000

40,000

64 .
30,000

20,000

10,000

0
Incoming Incoming Incoming Outgoing Outgoing Outgoing
exchange gift loan exchange gift loan
 Library acquisitions

The number acquisitions to the library further decreased

in 2016. More than two third of the acquisitions belonged to the
Flemish scientific patrimony. A bit less than one third was added
to the Federal Government scientific patrimony (gifts from An-
dré Fraiture, Jacques Lambinon & Jean Lehman). A small number
of books are the property of the Royal Belgian Botanical Society,
whose library is accommodated in the Botanic Garden.

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Monographs 1,035 926 965 1,165 911

Periodical
fascicles 2,733 2,500 2,500 2,200 2,000

Monographs Periodical fascicles

3,000

2,500

2,000
Library database
1,500

The number of records in our library database grew stead- 1,000

ily. The complete catalogue, available online, contains now a little
more than 130,000 records. 500

0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Articles 49,030 49,150 49,404 49,330 49,709

Series 4,695 4,789 4,828 5,007 5,080
Correspondance 7,444 7,444 7,444 7,452 7,453
Royal Botanical
Monographs 49,969 50,743 51,268 52,010 52,499 Flemish Federal Society of Belgium
Valuables 3,386 3,421 3,461 3,465 3,467
Serials 8,979 9,117 9,168 9,118 9,201 Monographs 627 264 20

Iconographic
material 560 1,554 2,185 2,640 2,904

Total 123,503 124,664 127,758 129,022 130,313

20
(2%)
Flemish
264
(29%)
Federal
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 627
(69%) Royal Botanical Society
60,000 of Belgium

50,000

40,000
65 .
30,000

20,000

10,000

0
es

les
ce

ls

ial
rie

ph

ria
l

er
an
tic

ab
ra
Se

Se

at
nd

lu
Ar

og

m
Va
po

on

c
es

hi
M

ap
rr
Co

gr
no
Ico
 External library consultation

The library is accessible to the public. However, the number of

visits has further fallen in 2016. This trend is expected to continue
considering that many botanical publications are available online.

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

External visitors 457 440 342 177 167 Research

Loans between libraries 61 58 95 25 23

Number of publications
External visitors Loans between libraries

600 The number of scientific contributions by members of the

staff further increased. The ratio between publications with im-
500
pact factor and without impact factor dropped, but the total num-
ber of papers with impact factor remained stable.
400

300

200
Manuscipts Abstracts Other
100
and of posters or publications
book chapters presentations (reports, book Total
reviews,...)
0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

2012 83 72 14 169

2013 116 50 26 192

2014 131 100 14 245

2015 134 97 27 258

2016 141 103 19 263

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

300

250

200

150

66 .
100

50

0
Manuscripts and Abstracts of Other publications Total
book chapters posters or (reports, book reviews,...)
presentations
 International International or Books
papers national papers or book chapters
with IF without IF

2012 30 45 8

2013 49 40 27

2014 75 42 14

2015 74 37 23

2016 74 46 21

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10
Average impact factor
0
International International or Books or
papers with IF national papers book chapters
The average impact factor of the manuscripts by staff mem-
without IF bers of the Botanic Garden decreased to 2.1. This decrease is ex-
plained by the absence of publications in the best journals outside
our domain.

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Papers with IF Papers without IF % with IF Average IF 2.81 2.33 2.04 3.25 2.11

2012 30 45 40%
Average IF
2013 49 40 55%
3.5
2014 75 42 64%
3
2015 74 37 67%

2016 74 46 62% 2.5

% with IF
1.5
70
1
60
0.5
50
0
40 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

30

20

10

0
67 .
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Publications
Publications in journals
with impact factor (IF)
1. Abrahamczyk, S., Janssens, S.B., Xixima, L., Ditsch, B.
& Fischer, E. (2016) Impatiens pinganoensis (Balsaminaceae),
a new species from Angola. Phytotaxa 261: 240-250. (IF
2015: 1.087)
2. Aptroot, A., Ertz, D., Etayo Salazar, J.A., Gueidan,
C., Mercado Diaz, J.A., Schumm, F. & Weerakoon, G.
(2016) Forty-six new species of Trypetheliaceae from the
tropics. Lichenologist 48: 609-638. (IF 2015: 1.29)
3. Bauman, D., Raspé, O., Meerts, P., Degreef, J.,
Muledi, J.I. & Drouet, T. (2016) Multiscale assemblage
of an ectomycorrhizal fungal community: the influence
of host functional traits and soil properties in a 10-ha
miombo forest. FEMS Microbiology Ecology 92: fiw151.
(IF 2015: 3.53)
4. Boedeker, C., Leliaert, F. & Zuccarello, G.C.
(2016) Molecular phylogeny of the Cladophoraceae
(Cladophorales, Ulvophyceae), with the resurrection
of Acrocladus Nägeli and Willeella Børgesen, and the
description of Lurbica gen. nov. and Pseudorhizoclonium
gen. nov. Journal of Phycology 52: 905–928. (IF 2015:
2.536)
5. Buckles, L.K., Verschuren, D., Weijers, J.W.H.,
Cocquyt, C., Blaauw, M. & Sinninghe Damsté, J.S.
(2016) Interannual and (multi-)decadal variability in
the sedimentary BIT index of Lake Challa, East Africa,
over the past 2200 years: assessment of the precipitation
proxy. Climate of the Past 12: 1243-1262. (IF 2015: 3.638)
6. Cabaña Fader, A.A., Salas, R., Dessein, S. & Cabral,
68 .
E.L. (2016) Synopsis of Hexasepalum (Rubiaceae), the
priority name for Diodella and a new species from Brazil.
Systematic Botany 41: 408-422. (IF 2015: 1.098)
7. Cadima Fuentes, X., van Treuren, R., Hoekstra, R., van
den Berg, R. & Sosef, M.S.M. (2016) Genetic diversity
of Bolivian wild potato germplasm: changes during ex
situ conservation management and comparisons with
resampled in situ populations. Genetic Resources and
Crop Evolution: doi:10.1007/s10722-015-0357-9. (IF 2015:
1.258)
8. Carlier, A., Fehr, L., Pinto-Carbó, M., Schäberle, T.,
Reher, R., Dessein, S., König, G. & Eberl, L. (2016)
The genome analysis of Candidatus-Burkholderia
crenata reveals that secondary metabolism may be a key
function of the Ardisia crenata leaf nodule symbiosis.
Environmental Microbiology 18: 2507-2522. (IF 2015:
5.932)
9. Chen, J., Parra, L.A., De Kesel, A., Khalid, A.N.,
Quasim, T., Ashraf, A., Bahkali, A.H., Hyde, K.D., Zhao,
R.L. & Callac, P. (2016) Inter- and intra-specific diversity
in Agaricus endoxanthus and allied species reveals a new
taxon, A. punjabensis. Phytotaxa 252: 1-16. (IF 2015: 1.087)
10. Cocquyt, C., de Haan, M. & Lokele Ndjombo,
E. (2016) Eunotia rudis sp. nov., a new diatom
(Bacillariophyta) from the Man and Biosphere Reserve at
Yangambi, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Phytotaxa
272: 73-81. (IF 2015: 1.087)
11. Cocquyt, C. & Ryken, E. (2016) Afrocymbella barkeri
spec. nov. (Bacillariophyta), a common phytoplankton
component of Lake Challa, a deep crater lake in East
Africa. European Journal of Phycology 51: 217-225. (IF
2015: 2.205)
12. Crop, E.D., Van De Putte, K., De Wilde, S., Njouonkou,
A.L., De Kesel, A. & Verbeken, A. (2016) Lactifluus
foetens and Lf. albomembranaceus sp. nov. (Russulaceae):
Look-alike milkcaps from gallery forests in tropical
Africa. Phytotaxa 277: 159-170. (IF 2015: 1.087)
13. Couvreur, J.M., San Martin, G. & Sotiaux, A. (2016)
Factors affecting the presence and the diversity of
bryophytes in the petrifying sources habitat (7220) in
Wallonia and the Brussels-Capital region, Belgium.
International Journal of Agronomy 2016: 1-18. (IF 2015:
pending)
14. Dauby, G., Zaiss, R., Blach-Overgaard, A., Catarino,
L., Damen, T., ..., Engledow, H., ..., Janssens, S.B.,
..., Sonké, B., Sosef, M.S.M., ..., Stoffelen, P., ... &
Couvreur, T.L.P. (2016) RAINBIO: a mega-database of
tropical African vascular plants distributions. PhytoKeys
74: 1-18. (IF 2015: 0.99)
15. De Kesel, A., Amalfi, M., Kasongo Wa Ngoy Kashiki,
B., Yorou, N.S., Raspé, O., Degreef, J. & Buyck, B.
(2016) New and interesting Cantharellus from tropical
Africa. Cryptogamie, Mycologie 37: 283-327. (IF 2015:
1.509 )
16. de Moraes, P.L.R., De Smedt, S. & Esser, H.-J. (2016)
Supplement to the "Catalogue of Brazilian plants
collected by Prince Maximilian of Wied". Plant Ecology
and Evolution 149: 308-315. (IF 2015: 1.162)
17. Ebeneye, H.C.M., Taudière, A., Niang, N., Ndiaye, C.,
Sauve, M., Awana, N.O., Verbeken, A., De Kesel,
A., Séne, S., Diédhiou, A., Sarda, V., Sadio, O.,
Cissoko, M., Ndoye, I., Selosse, M-A. & Bâ, A.M. (2016)
Ectomycorrhizal fungi are shared between seedlings and
adults in a monodominant Gilbertiodendron dewevrei
rain forest in Cameroon. Biotropica. doi: 10.1111/btp.12415
(IF 2015: 1.944)
18. Ertz, D., Fryday, A., Schmitt, I., Charrier, M., Dudek,
M. & Kukwa, M. (2016) Ochrolechia kerguelensis sp. nov.
from the Southern Hemisphere and O. antarctica
reinstated from the synonymy of O. parella. Phytotaxa
280: 129-140. (IF 2015: 1.087)
19. Ertz, D., Heuchert, B., Braun, U., Freebury, C.E.,
Common, R.S. & Diederich, P. (2016) Contribution to the
phylogeny and taxonomy of the genus Taeniolella, with
a focus on lichenicolous taxa. Fungal Biology 120: 1416-
1447. (IF 2015: 2.244)
20. Follak, S., Belz, R., Bohren, C., De Castro, O., Del
Guacchio, E., Pascual-Seva, N., Schwarz, M., Verloove,
F. & Essl, F. (2016) Biological flora of Central Europe:
Cyperus esculentus L. Perspectives in Plant Ecology,
Evolution and Systematics 23: 33-51. (IF 2015: 3.578)
21. Gautier, L., Lachenaud, O., van der Burgt, X. &
Kenfack, D. (2016) Five new species of Englerophytum K.
Krause (Sapotaceae) from central Africa. Candollea 71:
287-305. (IF 2015: 0.386)
22. Godefroid, S., Le Pajolec, S. & Van Rossum, F.
(2016) Pre-translocation considerations in rare plant
reintroductions: implications for designing protocols.
Plant Ecology 217: 169-182. (IF 2015: 1.49)
23. Groom, Q.J., Weatherdon, L. & Geijzendorffer, I.R.
(2016) Is citizen science an open science in the case of
biodiversity observations? Journal of Applied Ecology.
doi: 10.1111/1365-2664.12767 (IF 2015: 5.196)
24. Haelewaters, D., Zhao, S.Y., Clusella-Trullas, S., Cottrell,
T.E., De Kesel, A., .... & Roy, H.E. (2016) Parasites of
Harmonia axyridis: current research and perspectives.
BioControl. doi:10.1007/s10526-016-9766-8. (IF 2015: 1.767)
25. Hamsher, S.E., Kopalová, K., Kociolek, J.P., Zidarova,
R. & Van de Vijver, B. (2016) Revision of the genus
Nitzschia in the Maritime Antarctic Region. Fottea 16: 79-
102. (IF 2015: 2.026)
26. Hoehndorf, R., Alshahrani, M., Gkoutos, G.V., Gosline,
G.W., Groom, Q.J., Hamann, T., Kattge, J., Mota de
Oliveira, S., Schmidt, M., Sierra, S., Vos, R., Smets, E.F.
& Weiland, C. (2016) The Flora Phenotype Ontology
(FLOPO): tool for integrating morphological traits and
phenotypes of vascular plants. Journal of Biomedical
Semantics 7: 65. (IF 2015: 1.62)
27. Janssens, S.B., Groeninckx, I., De Block, P.,
Verstraete, B., Smets, E.F. & Dessein, S. (2016)
Dispersing towards Madagascar: Biogeography
and evolution of the Madagascan endemics of
the Spermacoceae tribe (Rubiaceae). Molecular
Phylogenetics and Evolution 95: 58-66. (IF 2015: 3.792)
28. Janssens, S.B., Vandelook, F., De Langhe, E.,
Verstraete, B., Smets, E., Vandenhouwe, I. & Swennen,
R. (2016) Evolutionary dynamics and biogeography of
Musaceae reveal a correlation between the diversification
of the banana family and the geological and climatic
history of Southeast Asia. New Phytologist 210: 1453-
1465. (IF 2015: 7.21)
29. Ječmenica, V., Droissart, V., Noret, N. & Stévart, T.
(2016) Taxonomy of Atlantic Central African orchids
5. A new species of Angraecum sect. Conchoglossum
(Orchidaceae, Angraecinae) from Gabon and Cameroon.
PhytoKeys 64: 61-71. (IF 2015: 0.99)
30. Jongkind, C.C.H. (2016) Maesobotrya Liberica Jongkind
(Phyllanthaceae), a new forest species from Liberia.
Candollea 71: 275-279. (IF 2015: 0.386)
31. Karthick, B., Kociolek, J.P., Taylor, J.C. & Cocquyt,
C. (2016) Gomphonema grande sp. nov., a new diatom
(Bacillariophyta) from the Democratic Republic of the
Congo, Tropical Africa. Phytotaxa 245: 187-196. (IF 2015:
1.087)
32. Kochman-Kędziora, N., Noga, T., Zidarova, R.,
Kopalová, K. & Van de Vijver, B. (2016)
Humidophila komarekiana sp. nov. (Bacillariophyta), a new
limnoterrestrial diatom species from King George Island
(Maritime Antarctica). Phytotaxa 272: 184-190. (IF 2015:
1.087)
33. Kopalová, K., Zidarova, R. & Van de Vijver,
B. (2016) Four new monoraphid diatom species
(Bacillariophyta, Achnanthaceae) from the Maritime
Antarctic Region. European Journal of Phycology 217:
1-19. (IF 2015: 2.205)
34. Kumla, J., Suwannarach, N., Vadthanarat, S., Raspé,
O. & Lumyong, S. (2016) First report of Singerocybe in
Thailand. Mycotaxon 131: 205-209. (IF 2015: 0.61)
35. Leliaert, F., Tronholm, A., Lemieux, C., Turmel,
M., DePriest, M.S., Bhattacharya, D., Karol, K.G.,
Fredericq, S., Zechman, F.W. & Lopez-Bautista, J.M.
(2016) Chloroplast phylogenomic analyses reveal
the deepest-branching lineage of the Chlorophyta,
Palmophyllophyceae class. nov. Scientific Reports 6:
25367. (IF 2015: 5.228)
36. Lemaire, B., Van Cauwenberghe, J., Verstraete, B.,
Chimphango, S., Stirton, C., Honnay, O., Smets, E.,
Sprent, J., James, E.K. & Muthama Muasya, A. (2016)
Characterization of the papilionoid-Burkholderia
interaction in the Fynbos biome: The diversity and
distribution of beta-rhizobia nodulating Podalyria
calyptrata (Fabaceae, Podalyrieae). Systematic and
Applied Microbiology 39: 41-48. (IF 2015: 3.691)
37. Li, G.J., Hyde, K.D., Zhao, R.L., Hongsanan, S., Abdel-
Aziz, F.A., ..., Raspé, O. & Maharachchikumburaa,
N. (2016) Fungal diversity notes 253-366: taxonomic
and phylogenetic contributions to fungal taxa. Fungal
Diversity 75: 27-274. (IF 2015: 6.991)
38. Lücking, R., Nelsen, M.P., Aptroot, A., Barillas de Klee,
R., Bawingan, P.A., ..., Ertz, D., ... & Ventura, N. (2016)
A phylogenetic framework for reassessing generic
concepts and species delimitation in the lichenized
family Trypetheliaceae (Ascomycota: Dothideomycetes).
Lichenologist 48: 739-762. (IF 2015: 1.29)
39. Martin, H., Touzet, P., Van Rossum, F., Delalande, D.
& Arnaud, J.-F. (2016) Phylogeographic pattern of range
expansion and evidence for cryptic species lineages in
Silene nutans in western Europe. Heredity 116: 286-294. (IF
2015: 3.801)
40. Meeus, S., Janssens, S.B., Helsen, K. & Jacquemyn,
H. (2016) Evolutionary trends in the distylous genus
Pulmonaria (Boraginaceae): Evidence of ancient
hybridization and current interspecific gene flow.
Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 98: 63-73. (IF 2015:
3.792)
41. Morin, S., Rosebery, J., Van de Vijver, B. & Schoefs,
69 .
B. (2016) Advances in diatom biodiversity and ecology.
Botany Letters 163: 69-70. (IF 2015: 0.776)
42. Noirot, M., Charrier, A., Stoffelen, P. & Anthony, F.
(2016) Reproductive isolation, gene flow and speciation in
the former Coffea subgenus: a review. Trees Structure and
Function 30: 597-608. (IF 2015: 1.706)
43. Obbels, D., Verleyen, E., Mano, M.J., Namsaraev,
Z., Sweetlove, M., ..., Ertz, D., ... & Vyverman, W.
(2016) Bacterial and eukaryotic biodiversity patterns
in terrestrial and aquatic habitats in the Sør Rondane
 Mountains, Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica. FEMS
Microbiology Ecology 92: doi:10.1093/femsec/fiw041. (IF
2015: 3.53)
44. Otto, R. & Verloove, F. (2016) A new natural hybrid in
Argemone (Papaveraceae). Phytotaxa 255: 57-65. (IF 2015:
1.087)
45. Pinto-Carbó, M., Sieber, S., Dessein, S., Wicker, T.,
Verstraete, B., Gademann, K., Eberl, L. & Carlier, A.
(2016) Evidence of horizontal gene transfer between
obligate leaf nodule symbionts. The ISME Journal 10:
2092-2105. (IF 2015: 9.328)
46. Quiroz, D., van Andel, T. & Sosef, M.S.M. (2016) Why
ritual plant use has ethnopharmacological relevance.
Journal of Ethnopharmacology 188: 48-56. (IF 2015: 3.055)
47. Raspé, O., Vadthanarat, S., De Kesel, A., Degreef,
J., Hyde, K.D. & Lumyong, S. (2016) Pulveroboletus
fragrans, a new Boletaceae species from Northern
Thailand, with a remarkable aromatic odor. Mycological
Progress 15: 15-38. (IF 2015: 1.572)
48. Riaux-Gobin, C., Compère, P., Jordan, R.W., Coste, M.
& Yesilyurt, J.C. (2016) Cocconeis molesta Kütz., C. diaphana
W.Sm. and C. dirupta W.Greg. (Bacillariophyta): type
material, ambiguities and possible synonymies. European
Journal of Taxonomy 204: 1-18. (IF 2015: 0.873)
49. Simo, M., Sonké, B., Droissart, V., Geerinck, D.J.L.,
Lowry Ii, P.P. & Stévart, T. (2016) A taxonomic
revision of Angraecum section Dolabrifolia (Orchidaceae,
Angraecinae), with the description of a new species from
Gabon. Phytotaxa 280: 81-115. (IF 2015: 1.087)
50. Sonké, B., Droissart, V., Micheneau, C., Lowry
Ii, P.P., Hardy, O.J., Plunkett, G.M. & Stévart, T.
(2016) Morphometrics and molecular phylogenetics
of Angraecum section Dolabrifolia (Orchidaceae,
Angraecinae). Plant Systematics and Evolution 302: 1027-
1045. (IF 2015: 1.361)
51. Sonké, B. & Lachenaud, O. (2016) Two New Species
of Oxyanthus DC. (Rubiaceae) from Central Africa.
Candollea 71: 173-180. (IF 2015: 0.386)
52. Sosef, M.S.M. (2016) Producing the Flore d'Afrique
centrale, past, present and future. Taxon 65: 937-939. (IF
2015: 2.907)
53. Sosef, M.S.M. (2016) Taxonomic novelties in Central
African grasses (Poaceae), Paniceae 1. Plant Ecology and
Evolution 149(3): 356-365. (IF 2015: 1.162)
54. Sukhorukov, A.P., Kushunina, M. & Verloove,
F. (2016) Notes on Atriplex, Oxybasis and Dysphania
(Chenopodiaceae) in West-Central Tropical Africa. Plant
Ecology and Evolution 149: 249-256. (IF 2015: 1.162)
55. Suwannarach, N., Kumla, J., Vadthanarat, S., Raspé,
O. & Lumyong, S. (2016) Morphological and molecular
evidence support a new truffle, Tuber lannaense, from
70 . Thailand. Mycological Progress 15: 827-834. (IF 2015:
1.572)
56. Taylor, J.C., Cocquyt, C. & Mayama, S. (2016) Navicula
nielsfogedii J.C.Taylor & Cocquyt sp.nov., a new diatom
(Bacillariophyta) from tropical and sub-tropical Africa.
Fottea 16: 201-208. (IF 2015: 2.026)
57. Taylor, J.C., Cocquyt, C. & Mayama, S. (2016) New and
interesting Eunotia (Bacillariophyta) from the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, tropical central Africa. Plant
Ecology and Evolution 149: 291-307. (IF 2015: 1.162)
58. Thongbai, B., Tulloss, R.E., Miller, S.L., Hyde, K.D., Chen,
J., Zhao, R. & Raspé, O. (2016) A new species and four
new records of Amanita (Amanitaceae; Basidiomycota)
from Northern Thailand. Phytotaxa 286: 211-231. (IF 2015:
1.087)
59. Thongklang, N., Chen, J., Bandara, A.R., Hyde, K.D.,
Raspé, O., Parra, L.A. & Callac, P. (2016) Studies
on Agaricus subtilipes, a new cultivatable species from
Thailand, incidentally reveal the presence of Agaricus
subrufescens in Africa. Mycoscience 57: 239-250. (IF 2015:
1.165)
60. Van de Vijver, B., Kopalová, K. & Zidarova, R.
(2016) Revision of the Psammothidium germainii complex
(Bacillariophyta) in the Maritime Antarctic Region.
Fottea 16: 145-156. (IF 2015: 2.026)
61. Van de Vijver, B., Kopalová, K., Zidarova, R.
& Kociolek, J.P. (2016) Two new Gomphonema species
(Bacillariophyta) from the Maritime Antarctic Region.
Phytotaxa 255: 209-220. (IF 2015: 1.087)
62. Van de Vijver, B., Mertens, A. & van Dam, H. (2016)
Olifantiella elisabethiana, a new raphid diatom species
(Bacillariophyta) observed in the Port of Antwerp
(Belgium). Phytotaxa 261: 251-259. (IF 2015: 1.087)
63. Van den Broeck, D. & Ertz, D. (2016) Cryptophaea,
a new genus of byssoid Arthoniaceae (lichenized
Ascomycota) and its phylogenetic position. Phytotaxa
261: 168-176. (IF 2015: 1.087)
64. van Proosdij, A., Raes, N., Wieringa, J.J. & Sosef,
M.S.M. (2016) Unequal contribution of widespread and
narrow-ranged species to botanical diversity patterns.
PLOS ONE 11: e0169200. (IF 2015: 3.057)
65. Van Rossum, F., Weidema, I., Martin, H., Le Cadre,
S., Touzet, P., Prentice, H.C. & Philipp, M. (2016)
The structure of allozyme variation in Silene nutans
(Caryophyllaceae) in north-western Europe. Plant
Systematics and Evolution 302: 23-40. (IF 2015: 1.361)
66. Verloove, F., Brusa, G. & Ardenghi, N.M.G. (2016)
Studies in the genus Paspalum (Paniceae, Poaceae)
in Europe: 3. Paspalum thunbergii, a new naturalized
neophyte in W Europe. Willdenowia 46: 137-143. (IF 2015:
0.5)
67. Verloove, F., Mesterhazy, A. & Browning, J. (2016)
Studies in Schoenoplectiella (Cyperaceae) in tropical West
Africa. Phytotaxa 283(1): 96-100. (IF 2015: 1.087)
68. Vieira, C., Camacho, O., Wynne, M.J., Mattio, L.,
Anderson, R.J., Bolton, J.J., Sansón, M., D'Hondt, S.,
Leliaert, F., Fredericq, S., Payri, C. & De Clerck,
O. (2016) Shedding new light on old algae: Matching
names and sequences in the brown algal genus Lobophora
(Dictyotales, Phaeophyceae). Taxon 65: 689-707. (IF 2015:
2.907)
69. Vinsova, P., Kopalová, K. & Van de Vijver, B. (2016)
Morphological observations on Pseudoeunotia linearis
Carter (Bacillariophyta) and its transfer to the genus
Eutonia. Botany Letters 163: 117-123. (IF 2015: 0.776)
70. Wang, T.W., De Kesel, A., Haelewaters, D. & Pfister,
D.H. (2016) Farlow Herbarium cockroach hosts new
record of Laboulbeniales for North America. Rhodora
118: 26-31. (IF 2015: 0.41)
71. Yu, S.-X., Janssens, S.B., Zhu, X.-Y., Lidén,
M., Gao, T.-G. & Wang, W. (2016) Phylogeny of
Impatiens (Balsaminaceae): integrating molecular and
 morphological evidence into a new classification.
Cladistics 32: 179-197. (IF 2015: 4.952)
72. Zanatta, F., Patiño, J., Lebeau, F., Massinon, M., Hylander,
K., de Haan, M., Ballings, P., Degreef, J. &
Vanderpoorten, A. (2016) Measuring spore settling
velocity for an improved assessment of dispersal rates in
mosses. Annals of Botany 118: 197-206. (IF 2015: 3.982)
73. Zemagho, L., Liede-Schumann, S., Sonké, B.,
Janssens, S.B., Lachenaud, O., Verstraete, B.
& Dessein, S. (2016) Phylogenetics of tribe Sabiceeae
(Ixoroideae, Rubiaceae) revisited, with a new subgeneric
classification for Sabicea. Botanical Journal of the Linnean
Society 182: 551-580. (IF 2015: 2.523)
74. Zidarova, R., Kopalová, K. & Van de Vijver, B.
(2016) Ten new Bacillariophyta species from James
Ross Island and the South Shetland Islands (Maritime
Antarctic Region). Phytotaxa 272: 37-62. (IF 2015: 1.087)
Publications in journals without IF
75. Charwat, E., Fabri, R. & Hanquart, N. (2016) "Dieu
a créé et Linné a organisé" et le Linnaeus Link Catalogue
met à disposition ou un Catalogue commun au service de
l'oeuvre de Linné. Cahiers de la Documentation 70: 5-8.
76. de Haan, M. (2016) Myxomyceten op epifytische
mossen in Vlaanderen, een opportuniteit. Sterbeeckia 34:
47-61.
77. De Kesel, A., Haelewaters, D. & Dekoninck, W.
(2016) Myrmecophilous Laboulbeniales (Ascomycota) in
Belgium. Sterbeeckia 34: 3-6.
78. De Mulder, C., Van Hoey, S., Van Hulle, S., Agathos,
S.N., Cauwenberg, P., Mergen, P., ... & Nopens, I. (2016)
Pressing topics in the Belgian water sector anno 2015.
Sustainability of Water Quality and Ecology 7: 32-36.
79. Degreef, J., Demuynck, L., Mukandera, A.,
Nyirandayambaje, G., Nzigidahera, B. & De Kesel,
A. (2016) Wild edible mushrooms, a valuable resource
for food security and rural development in Burundi and
Rwanda. BASE Biotechnologie, Agronomie, Société et
Environnement 20: 1-12.
80. Diagre-Vanderpelen, D. (2016) The School of Botany
of the Brussels Botanic Garden (1797-...): From Center to
Margins. Museologia & Interdisciplinaridade 5: 42-65.
81. Diansambu, I., Dibaluka Mpulusu, S., Lumande, K.J. &
Degreef, J. (2016) Valorisation de résidus organiques
solides d'origine agricole comme substrats pour la
culture de deux espèces de champignons comestibles.
Revue scientifique et technique Forêt et Environnement
du Bassin du Congo 6: 28-38.
82. Fabri, R. & Demoulin, V. (2016) Jacques Lambinon
(1936-2015), un pilier de la botanique en Belgique. Natura
Mosana 69: 44-46.
83. Fabri, R. & Hanquart, N. (2016) Botanic Garden
Meise, Belgium : From art to plants and from plants to art.
The Botanical Artist 22: 16.
84. Ferrer Gallego, P.P., Ferrando, I., Verloove, F. &
Laguna Lumbreras, E. (2016) Rhynchosia aurea (Rottler)
DC. (Leguminosae), nueva especie exótica para la flora
valenciana introducida a través de sustratos de cultivo
hortícola. Bouteloua 26: 31-33.
85. Galasso, G., Domina, G., Adorni, M., Ardenghi, N.M.G.,
Banfi, E. & Verloove, F. (2016) Notulae to the Italian
alien vascular flora: 1. Italian Botanist 1: 17-37.
86. Galasso, G., Domina, G., Ardenghi, N.M.G., Arrigoni, P.,
Banfi, E., ..., Verloove, F., ... & Nepi, C. (2016) Notulae to
the Italian alien vascular flora: 2. Italian Botanist 2: 55-71.
87. Geerinck, D.J.L. (2016) Jacques Lambinon et la
dendrologie. Natura Mosana 69: 47-49.
88. Gerstmans, C. & Ertz, D. (2016) Arthonia phlyctiformis
Nyl. (Arthoniaceae) retrouvé en France, après plus d'un
siècle. Bulletin d'informations de l'association française
de lichénologie 41: 10-12.
89. Godefroid, S., Hidvégi, F., Le Pajolec, S. & Van
Rossum, F. (2016) Life Herbages: Au secours de joyaux
botaniques menacés. Le Magazine Natagora 72: 14-16.
90. Godefroid, S., Le Pajolec, S. & Van Rossum, F.
(2016) Rescuing critically endangered species in Belgium?
an ambitious reintroduction program of the Botanic
Garden Meise. BGjournal 13: 24-27.
91. Hanquart, N., Robbrecht, E. & Diagre, D. (2016)
De Rio à Bruxelles : les herbiers d'Ernest Sonnet (1840-
1901). Problèmes posés par les collections d’un floriste
atypique. Dumortiera 109: 23-37.
92. Hoste, I. (2016) Le Brome des Ardennes, plante
emblématique de la flore belge, et le patriotisme de
François Crépin. Natura Mosana 69: 50-57.
93. Hoste, I., Barendse, R., de Zwart, A. & van der Sluis, H.
(2016) De eerste vondsten van de Zuid-Europese soort
Veronica cymbalaria in Nederland en België. Dumortiera
108: 8-12.
94. Hoste, I. & Diagre, D. (2016) Belgian botany in the
nineteenth and early twentieth centuries: From plant
hunting to nascent nature conservation. Journal for the
History of Environment and Society 1: 37-63.
95. Hoste, I. & Verloove, F. (2016) Juncus tenuis subsp.
dichotomus, lang miskend maar mogelijk sinds kort
inburgerend in België. Dumortiera 108: 22-29.
96. Koureas, D., Arvanitidis, C., Belbin, L., Berendsohn, W.,
Damgaard, C., Groom, Q., Güntsch, A., Hagedorn,
G., Hardisty, A. & Hobern, D. (2016) Community
engagement: The last mile-challenge for European
research e-infrastructures. Research Ideas and
Outcomes 2: e9933.
97. Koureas, D., Hardisty, A., Vos, R.A., Agosti, D.,
Arvanitidis, C., ..., Groom, Q.J., ..., Mergen, P., ...
& Smith, V.S. (2016) Unifying European Biodiversity
Informatics (BioUnify). Research Ideas and Outcomes 2:
e7787.
98. Lachenaud, O. & van der Maesen, L.J.G. (2016) Notes
on African Dalbergia (Leguminosae-Papilionoideae) with
the description of two new species from Atlantic Central
Africa. Symbolae Botanicae Upsalienses 38: 167-194.
71 .
99. Leese, F., Altermatt, F., Bouchez, A., Ekrem, T., Hering,
D., ..., Mergen, P., ... & Zegura, B. (2016) DNAqua-Net:
Developing new genetic tools for bioassessment and
monitoring of aquatic ecosystems in Europe. Research
Ideas and Outcomes 2: e11321.
100. Lucy, F.E., Roy, H., Simpson, A., Carlton, J.T.,
Hanson, J.M., ..., Groom, Q.J., ... & Panov, V.E. (2016)
INVASIVESNET towards an International Association
for Open Knowledge on Invasive Alien Species.
Management of Biological Invasions 7: 131-139.
 101. Mady, M., Brunerye, L. & Verloove, F. (2016) Un
Scirpus nord-américain nouveau pour la flore française
: Scirpus cyperinus (L.) Kunth (Cyperaceae). Journal de
Botanique 76: 71-77.
102. Mangambu Mokoso, J.d.D., Janssens, S.B.,
Robbrecht, E., Janssen, T., Ntahobavuka Habimana,
H. & Diggelen, R. (2016) A molecular investigation of
Asplenium: Asplenium kivuensis nov. - a new species from
Kivu (Democratic Republic of Congo). International
Journal of Current Research in Biosciences and Plant
Biology 3: 27-37.
103. Otto, R. & Verloove, F. (2016) New xenophytes
from La Palma (Canary Islands, Spain), with emphasis
on naturalized and (potentially) invasive species.
Collectanea Botanica 35: 1-40.
104. Roy, H.E., Hesketh, H., Purse, B.V., Eilenberg, J., Santini,
A., ..., Groom, Q., ... & Dunn, A.M. (2016) Alien
pathogens on the horizon: Opportunities for predicting
their threat to wildlife. Conservation Letters: doi: 10.1111/
conl.12297.
105. Runnel, V., Wetzel, F.T., Groom, Q.J., Koch, W., Pe'er,
I., Valland, N., Panteri, E. & Kõljalg, U. (2016) Summary
report and strategy recommendations for EU citizen
science gateway for biodiversity data. Research Ideas and
Outcomes 2: e11563.
106. Sanchez Gullon, E. & Verloove, F. (2016) New records
of interesting vascular plants (mainly xenophytes) in the
Iberian Peninsula. VI. Folia Botanica Extremadurensis 10:
51-58.
107. Smirnova, L., Mergen, P., Groom, Q.J., De Wever,
A., Penev, L., Stoev, P., Pe'er, I., Runnel, V., Camacho,
A., Vincent, T., Agosti, D., Arvanitidis, C., Bonet, F.J. &
Saarenmaa, H. (2016) Data sharing tools adopted by the
European Biodiversity Observation Network Project.
Research Ideas and Outcomes 2: e9390.
108. Somme, L., Van Rossum, F., Mairesse, J.-L. &
Jacquemart, A.-L. (2016) Influence de la restauration et de
l’entretien de milieux tourbeux sur les communautés de
pollinisateurs en Lorraine belge. Parcs & Réserves 71: 4-11.
109. Sukhorukov, A.P., Martin-Bravo, S., Verloove, F.,
Maroyi, A., Iamonico, D., Catarino, L., El Mokni, R.,
Daniel, T.F., Belyaeva, I.V. & Kushunina, M. (2016)
Chorological and taxonomic notes on African plants.
Botany Letters 163: 417-428. (IF 2015: 0.776)
110. Van de Kerckhove, O. (2016) Geïllustreerd overzicht
van Leccinum subsectie Scabra in België. Somber gekleurde
ruigsteelboleten bij berk. Sterbeeckia 34: 7-32.
111. Van de Put, K. & De Kesel, A. (2016) Dacrymyces olivei
sp. nov., een dubbelganger van D. stillatus. Sterbeeckia 34:
62-64.
112. Van den Broeck, D. (2016) Atlasproject lichenen en
lichenicole fungi provincie Antwerpen. Verslag van acht
72 .
excursies in 2015. Muscillanea 36: 43-55.
113. Van den Broeck, D. & De Wit, D. (2016)
Lichenologisch verslag van het weekend in Belval-en-
Argonne 3-6 september 2015. Muscillanea 36: 11-30.
114. Van den Broeck, D., Van Dort, K. & De Wit, D. (2016)
Thelidium zwackhii, nieuw voor Vlaanderen. Met een
veldsleutel voor de pyrenocarpe terrestrische lichenen
van België. Dumortiera 108: 30-32.
115. Vanhecke, L. (2016) In memoriam Herman Stieperaere
(17.09.1945-11.06.2015). Dumortiera 108: 3-4.
116. Verloove, F. (2016) Adventieve en ingeburgerde
zeggen (Carex, Cyperaceae). Dumortiera 108: 13-21.
117. Verloove, F. (2016) Jacques Lambinon (1936-2015) en de
Nouvelle Flore de la Belgique. Een terugblik. Dumortiera
108: 5-7.
118. Verloove, F. (2016) Les campings du littoral belge :
un lieu de prédilection inattendu pour l'introduction de
plantes exotiques. Natura Mosana 69: 96-100.
119. Verloove, F. (2016) A naturalised population of
Espostoa melanostele (Cactaceae: Cactoideae) on
Tenerife (Canary Islands). Cactus Explorer 17: 19-22.
120. Verloove, F. & Alves, P. (2016) New vascular plant
records for the western part of the Iberian Peninsula
(Portugal and Spain). Folia Botanica Extremadurensis 10:
7-25.
Books and book chapters
121. Beentje, H.J. (2016) Pandanaceae. In: Sosef, M.S.M.
(Ed.) Flore d'Afrique centrale, nouvelle série. Botanic Garden
Meise, Meise, 13 pp.
122. Compère, P. (2016) Cyanoprocaryota. In: Malaisse,
F., Schaijes, M. & D'Outreligne, C. (Eds.) Copper-cobalt
flora of Upper Katanga and Copperbelt: Field guide. Presses
agronomiques de Gembloux, Gembloux, pp. 44-45.
123. Degreef, J., Demuynck, L., Dibaluka Mpulusu, S.,
Isaac, D., Kasongo Wa Ngoy Kashiki, B., Mukandera,
A., Nzigidahera, B., Yorou, N.S. & De Kesel, A. (2016)
African mycodiversity, a huge potential for mushroom
trade and industry. In: Baars, J.J.P. & Sonnenberg, A.
(Eds.) Science and cultivation of edible fungi: Proceedings of
the XIXth international congress on the science and cultivation
of edible fungi, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 30 May-2 June
2016. International Society for Mushroom Science, pp.
371-376.
124. Ector, L., Van de Vijver, B., Wetzel, C.E., Cauchie,
H.-M., Hoffmann, L. & Dobrowolski, A. (Eds.) (2016)
Programme et livre des résumés, 35ème Colloque de l'Association
des Diatomistes de Langue Française (ADLaF), Belvaux,
Luxembourg, 13-15 septembre 2016. Luxembourg Institute of
Science and Technology (LIST), Esch-sur-Alzette, 79 pp.
125. Ertz, D. (2016) Lichenized Fungi. In: Malaisse, F.,
Schaijes, M. & D'Outreligne, C. (Eds.) Copper-cobalt
flora of Upper Katanga and Copperbelt: Field guide. Presses
agronomiques de Gembloux, Gembloux, pp. 46-52.
126. Es, K.C.R. (2016) De Plantentuin Meise. Groen en
Smakelijk. KNNV Uitgeverij.
127. Geerinck, D.J.L. (2016) Asparagaceae. In: Sosef,
M.S.M. (Ed.) Flore d'Afrique centrale, nouvelle série. Botanic
Garden Meise, Meise, 34 pp.
128. Janssens, S.B. (2016) Musaceae. In: Sosef, M.S.M. (Ed.)
Flore d'Afrique centrale, nouvelle série. Botanic Garden
Meise, Meise, 15 pp.
129. Lachenaud, O. (2016) Dalbergia. In: Sosef, M.S.M.,
Florence, J., Ngok Banak, L., Bourobou, H.P.B. &
Bissiengou, P. (Eds.) Leguminosae - Papilionoideae. Margraf
Publishers; Backhuys Publishers, Weikersheim, pp. 101-
153.
130. Ralitsa, Z., Kopalová, K. & Van de Vijver, B.
(2016) Diatoms from the Antarctic Region. I: Maritime
 Antarctica. In: Lange-Bertalot, H. (Ed.) Iconographia
Diatomologica, Vol. 24. Koeltz Botanical Books,
Oberreifenberg, 504 pp.
131. Sosef, M.S.M. (2016) L'exploration botanique du
Gabon. In: Vande weghe, J. & Stévart, T. (Eds.) Plantes
à fleurs du Gabon. Agence Nationale des Parcs Nationaux,
Libreville, pp. 28-31.
132. Sosef, M.S.M. & Bissiengou, P. (2016) Ochnaceae.
In: Sosef, M.S.M., Florence, J., Ngok Banak, L.,
Bourobou, H.P.B. & Bissiengou, P. (Eds.) Eriocaulaceae,
Ochnaceae, Scrophulariaceae. Margraf Publishers, Backhuys
Publishers, pp. 21-87.
133. Sosef, M.S.M., Florence, J., Ngok Banak, L., Bourobou,
H.P.B. & Bissiengou, P. (Eds.) (2016) Eriocaulaceae,
Ochnaceae, Scrophulariaceae. Margraf Publishers, Backhuys
Publishers, Weikersheim, 158 pp.
134. Sosef, M.S.M., Florence, J., Ngok Banak, L., Bourobou,
H.P.B. & Bissiengou, P. (Eds.) (2016) Leguminosae -
Papilionoideae. Margraf Publishers, Backhuys Publishers,
Weikersheim, 407 pp.
135. Stieperaere, H. (2016) Antherocerotophyta. In:
Malaisse, F., Schaijes, M. & D'Outreligne, C. (Eds.)
Copper-cobalt flora of Upper Katanga and Copperbelt : Field
guide. Presses agronomiques de Gembloux, Gembloux,
pp. 53-55.
136. Stieperaere, H. (2016) Bryophyta. In: Malaisse,
F., Schaijes, M. & D'Outreligne, C. (Eds.) Copper-cobalt
flora of Upper Katanga and Copperbelt: Field guide. Presses
agronomiques de Gembloux, Gembloux, pp. 58-61.
137. Stieperaere, H. (2016) Marchantiophyta. In:
Malaisse, F., Schaijes, M. & D'Outreligne, C. (Eds.)
Copper-cobalt flora of Upper Katanga and Copperbelt: Field
guide. Presses agronomiques de Gembloux, pp. 56-57.
138. van der Maesen, L.J.G. & Lachenaud, O. (2016) Millettia
sect. Afroscandentes Dunn. In: Sosef, M.S.M., Florence,
J., Ngok Banak, L., Bourobou, H.P.B. & Bissiengou, P.
(Eds.) Leguminosae - Papilionoideae. Margraf Publishers;
Backhuys Publishers, Weikersheim, pp. 251-260.
139. van der Meijden, R., Strack van Schijndel, M. &
Van Rossum, F. (2016) Guide des plantes sauvages du
Benelux. Agentschap Plantentuin Meise, 520 pp.
140. van der Meijden, R., Strack van Schijndel, M. &
Van Rossum, F. (2016) Wilde planten van de Benelux, een
veldgids. Agentschap Plantentuin Meise, 520 pp.
141. van der Meijden, R., Strack van Schrijndel, M. &
Van Rossum, F. (2016) Field guide to the wild plants of
Benelux. Agentschap Plantentuin Meise, 520 pp.
Popular publications
142. Cambré, C. & Es, K. (2016) Asters. Jardins & Loisirs
9-10: 60-63.
143. Cambré, C. & Es, K. (2016) Oranjerieplanten. Fence
11-12: 62-65.
144. Cambré, C., Es, K. & Hidvégi, F. (2016) Les plantes
d'orangerie. Jardins & Loisirs 11-12: 72-75.
145. Es, K. (2016) Ficus. Fence 6-8: 54-56.
146. Es, K. (2016) Pleins feux sur les rhododendrons. Jardins
& Loisirs 4: 90-93.
147. Es, K. (2016) Rododendrons, in vuur en vlam. Fence 4:
82-85.
148. Es, K. (2016) Theatrale irissen. Prachtig kleurenpalet.
Fence: 59.
149. Es, K. & Hidvégi, F. (2016) Coniferen, ouder dan
dinosaurussen. Fence 2-3: 76-79.
150. Es, K. & Hidvégi, F. (2016) Iris théâtraux. Une superbe
palette de couleurs. Jardins & Loisirs 4: 65.
151. Es, K. & Hidvégi, F. (2016) Les conifères, plus vieux
que les dinosaures. Jardins & Loisirs 2-3: 82-85.
152. Es, K. & Hidvégi, F. (2016) Les Ficus. Jardins & Loisirs
6-8: 52-54.
153. Es, K. & Hidvégi, F. (2016) Les majestueuses serres du
Jardin botanique Meise. Jardins & Loisirs 4: 70-73.
154. Es, K. & Hidvégi, F. (2016) Parels van serres: De kassen
van de Plantentuin Meise. Fence 4: 64-67.
155. Van Conkelberge, L. (2016) Opnieuw Gentse
knolbegonia's in Plantentuin Meise. Sierteelt &
Groenvoorziening 60: 41-41.
156. Van Conkelberge, L. (2016) Focus op
Belgische potchrysanten in Plantentuin Meise.
Sierteelt&Groenvoorziening 18: 29.
Web publications and book reviews
157. Branquart, E., Vanderhoeven, S., Groom, Q.J. &
Tanaka, H. (2016) [Web publication] Acer rufinerve
(grey snake-bark maple) (http://www.cabi.org/isc/
datasheet/2889).
158. De Block, P. (2016) [Book review] Extinct Madagascar.
Picturing the island's past, Steven M. Goodman and
William L. Jungers with Plates by Velizar Simeonovski.
Biological Conservation 193: 115.
159. Diagre-Vanderpelen, D. (2016) [Web publication]
Biographies of F. Crépin, L. Errera & E. Marchal (http://
www.botany.be/fr/prix). The Royal Botanical Society of
Belgium Awards.
160. Diagre-Vanderpelen, D. (2016) [Web publication]
Maris, Martin (Martijn) (Fijnaart, 14 janvier 1810 - Ixelles,
28 septembre 1868), voyageur, naturaliste-collecteur,
médecin (?), diplomate (http://www.kaowarsom.be/fr/
notices_maris_martin). Dictionnaire Biographique des Belges
d’Outre-Mer KAOW - ARSOM.
161. Groom, Q.J. (2016) Caring for and sharing data created
by volunteers. (https://jappliedecologyblog.wordpress.
com/2016/10/04/caring-for-and-sharing-data-created-
by-volunteers/).
162. McGeoch, M., Groom, Q.J., Pagad, S., Petrosyan,
V.G., Ruiz, G.M. & Wilson, J. (2016) Data fitness for use in
research on alien and invasive species. Global Biodiversity
Information Facility, 29 pp.
163. Sosef, M.S.M. (2016) [Book review] Spot-characters
for the Identification of Malesian Seed Plants. Plant 73 .
Ecology and Evolution 149: 366-367.
164. Vanderborght, T. (2016). List of seeds. (http://www.
plantentuinmeise.be/RESEARCH/COLLECTIONS/
LIVING/INDEX_SEMINUM/BR_IS2016.pdf)
165. Vanhecke, L. (2016) [Book review] De KNNV Veldgids
Rompgemeenschappen en enkele kanttekeningen
daarbij. Dumortiera 108: 33-37.
 Reports, documentary films

166. Cocquyt, C. (2016) Analyses of 6 filtered phytoplankton

samples from Lake Kivu. Report January 2016. 12 pp.
167. Dessein, S., Es, K.C.R. & Bellefroid, E. (2016)
Plantentuin Meise 2.0 De wereld van planten in hartje Europa.
48 pp.
168. Fraiture, A., Sroka, G. & Van den Broeck, D.
(2016) Convention d'étude pour l'inventaire des polypores et
des lichens des placettes du réseau de suivi extensif de l'état
sanitaire des écosystèmes forestiers : Rapport final 2016. Jardin
Botanique Meise, 319 pp.
169. Hidvégi, F. (2016) Enquête de satisfaction de la
Newsletter Musa. Tevredenheidsenquête Musa (Newsletter).
(https://infogr.am/enquete_musa__results)
170. Hidvégi, F. & Degreef, J. (2016) Documentary:
Rwanda Fungi - A scientific expedition to Rwanda to
make an inventory of edible mushrooms (https://youtu.
be/dY84DavE5HQ).
171. Vanderborght, T. (2016) LIVCOL, database for the
Living Collections. Data and Programming. 26 pp.
172. Vanderborght, T. (2016) PHASEO, database for the
Wild bean Collection. Data and Programming. 16 pp.
173. Vanderborght, T. (2016) Quel avenir pour les bases de
données relatives aux collections vivantes? Brahms vs IrisBG. 7
pp.
174. Vanhecke, L. & Becuwe, M. (2016) Overzicht van de
floristische, vegetatiekundige, ecologische en historisch-
agrarische kenmerken van sloten en poelen in het
westelijk en zuidoostelijk gedeelte van het beschermde
landschap Oudlandpolders van Lampernisse en van hun
habitat- en natuurwaarde en kwetsbaarheid. Rapport.
Agentschap Plantentuin Meise, 173 pp.
175. Vanhecke, L., Becuwe, M., Engledow, H. &
Vanbillement, B. (2016) Botanische, ecologische en
landschappelijke elementen voor de opmaak van een
beheersplan tot het behoud en verdere ontwikkeling
van de biodiversiteit in en langs de sloten en poelen in de
Beschermde Oudlandpolders van Lampernisse. Rapport.
Agentschap Plantentuin Meise, 233 pp.

74 .
The Garden’s team
Staff Flemish Community

.. Amalfi, Mario .. Hoste, Ivan .. Van Damme Vivek, Seppe .. Vanderstraeten, Dirk
.. Asselman, Sabrina .. Janssens, Marina .. Van de Kerckhove, Omer .. Vanwinghe, Petra
.. Baert, Wim .. Janssens, Steven .. Van de Vijver, Bart .. Verdickt, Nathalie
.. Ballings, Petra .. Kaïssoumi, Abdennabi .. Van de Vyver, Ann .. Verdonck, Carina
.. Bawin, Yves .. Kleber, Jutta .. Van den Borre, Jeroen .. Verissimo Pereira, Nuno
.. Bebwa Baguma, Nestor .. Kosolosky, Chris .. Van den Broeck, Dries .. Verlinden, Kevin
.. Bellanger, Sven .. Lachenaud, Olivier .. Van den Broeck, Mia .. Verlinden, Willy
.. Bellefroid, Elke .. Laenen, Luc .. Van Den Troost, Gery .. Verloove, Filip
.. Bockstael, Patrick .. Lanata, Francesca .. Van der Beeten, Iris .. Vermeerbergen, Jochen
.. Bogaerts, Ann .. Lanckmans, Peter .. Van der Jeugd, Michael .. Vermeersch, Bart
.. Borremans, Paul .. Lanin, Lieve .. Van der Plassche, Thierry .. Versaen, François
.. Brouwers, Erwin .. Lanin, Myriam .. Van Eeckhoudt, Jos .. Versaen, Ilse
.. Buyle, Céline .. Lanin, Peter .. Van Eeckhoudt, Lucienne .. Verschueren, Alice
.. Cambré, Chitra .. Leliaert, Frederik .. Van Grimbergen, Dieter .. Verstraete, Brecht
.. Cammaerts,Thomas .. Le Pajolec, Sarah .. Van Hamme, Lucienne .. Verwaeren, Leen
.. Cassaer, Ronny .. Leyman, Viviane .. Van Herp, Marc .. Vissers, Dany
.. Clarysse, Katrien .. Lips, Jimmy .. Van Hove, Daniel .. Vleminckx, Kevin
.. Claus, Liliane .. Lucas, Glen .. Van Hoye, Manon .. Vleminckx, Sabine
.. Cocquyt, Christine .. Looverie, Marleen .. Van Humbeeck, Jos .. Vloeberghen, Jos
.. Cremers, Stijn .. Maerten, Christophe .. Van Humbeeck, Linda .. Willems, Stefaan
.. Dardenne, Christel .. Mertens, Micheline .. Van Kerckhoven, Ken .. Zérard, Carine
.. De Backer, Rita .. Mombaerts, Marijke .. Van Opstal, Jan
.. De Beck, Jan .. Ntore, Salvator .. Van Ossel, Anja
.. De Block, Petra .. Olievier, Bart .. Van Renterghem, Koen
.. De Bondt, Leen .. Pauwels, Geert .. Van wal, Rita
.. De Coster, An .. Peeters, Katarina .. Van Wambeke, Paul
.. De Groote, Anne .. Peeters, Marc .. Vandelook, Filip
.. de Haan, Myriam .. Postma, Susan .. Vanden Abeele, Samuel
.. Dehaes, Mimi .. Puttemans, Barbara .. Vandendriessche, Yuri
.. De Jonge, Gerrit .. Puttenaers, Myriam
.. De Kesel, André .. Reusens, Dirk
.. De Medts, Steve .. Reynders, Marc
.. De Meeter, Ivo .. Robberechts, Jean
.. De Meeter, Niko .. Ronse, Anne
.. De Meyer, Frank .. Ryken, Els
.. De Meyere, Dirk .. Saeys, Wim Staff French Community
.. De Pauw, Kevin .. Schaillée, David
.. De Smedt, Sofie .. Scheers, Elke
.. Decock, Marleen .. Schoemaker, Erika .. Beau, Natacha .. Hidvégi, Franck
.. Dehertogh, Davy .. Schoevaerts, Johan .. Charavel, Valérie .. Jospin, Xavier
.. Delcoigne, Daphne .. Schuerman, Riet .. Degreef, Jérôme .. Lahaye, Chantal
.. Deraet, Nancy .. Semeraro, Alexia .. Denis, Alain .. Lekeux, Hubert
.. Derammelaere, Stijn .. Seynaeve, Isabelle .. Diagre, Denis .. Magotteaux, Denis
.. Derycke, Marleen .. Sosef, Marc .. Dubroca, Yaël .. Mamdy, Guillaume
.. Dessein, Steven .. Speliers, Wim .. Ertz, Damien .. Orban, Philippe
.. D'Hondt, Frank .. Steppe, Eric .. Etienne, Christophe .. Raspé, Olivier
.. Engledow, Henry .. Stevens, Kenny .. Fabri, Régine .. Rombout, Patrick
.. Es, Koen .. Stoffelen, Piet .. Fernandez, Antonio .. Salmon, Géraud 75 .
.. Esselens, Hans .. Swaerts, Danny .. Fraiture, André .. Stuer, Benoît
.. Franck, Pieter .. Swaerts, Wouter .. Galluccio, Michele .. Telka, Dominique
.. Gheys, Rudy .. Tavernier, Wim .. Gerstmans, Cyrille .. Van Onacker, Jean
.. Ghijs, Dimitri .. Thiebackx, Mattehw .. Godefroid, Sandrine .. Van Rossum, Fabienne
.. Groom, Quentin .. Tilley, Maarten .. Hanquart, Nicole .. Vanderborght, Thierry
.. Hanssens, Francis .. Tytens, Liliane
.. Herbosch, Johan .. Van Belle, Nand
.. Heyvaert, Karin .. Van Caekenberghe, Frank
.. Heyvaert, Louisa .. Van Campenhout, Geert
 Volunteers

.. Aerts, Lutgarde .. Mattheeuws, Anne

.. Bailly, Francine .. Meira Y Duran, Octavio
.. Belmans, Lucie .. Mignolet, Vinciane
.. Berckx, Anna-Maria .. Minost, Claire Visiting postdocs
.. Bonnin, Jacques .. Moesen, Piet
.. Boyker, Viktor .. Mortelmans, Bieke
.. Buekenhoudt, Marijke .. Moulaert, Colette .. Ensslin, Andreas
.. Buelens, Luc .. Narmon, Gisèle
.. Cammaerts, Jean Pierre .. Peeters, Henrica
.. Cammaerts, Lisette .. Petri, Vitalija
.. Cappelleman, Ingrid .. Putman, Didier
.. Claes, Philippe .. Ray, Anne Student workers
.. Claessens, Alfons .. Roeck, Robert
.. Coen, Marie-Laure .. Roggemans, Martine
.. Cuvry, Bruno .. Rombauts, Luc .. Ait Aadi, Aïcha .. Mariën, Toon
.. De Beer, Dirk .. Saintrond, Dominique .. Chahbouni, Jaouad .. Masy, Cindy
.. De Boeck, Marc .. Scheers, Patricia .. De Braekeler, Jolien .. Masy, Kelly
.. de Borman, Sandrine .. Scheiba, Maria .. De Dobbeleer, Nele .. Masy, Sven
.. De Cock, Marianne .. Schotte, Marleen .. De Neve, Elke .. Masy, Tim
.. De Cuyper, Jef .. Sevenants, Emiel .. De Neve, Jo .. Merckx, Jef
.. De Hondt, Eugeen .. Seynaeve, Isabelle .. De Pauw, Karen .. Mertens, Arne
.. de Lominne de Bisc, Percy .. Shutt, Richard .. De Raedt, Laura .. Poppeliers, Sanne
.. De Ronghé, Rose-Marie .. Speeckaert, Claudine .. Decoene, Isaak .. Praet, Eline
.. De Smet, Françoise .. Simon, Daniel .. Foets, Jasper .. Rombout, Fiona
.. De Wit, Daniël .. Snyers, Ludo .. Geels, Alexandra .. Sax, Yannick
.. Dehaes, Mimi .. Sonemann, Anja .. Geeroms, Jonathan .. Scheere, David
.. Delière, Sandra .. Sroka, Gabriela .. Glodé, Quentin .. Stevens, Laurenz
.. Devolder, Christiane .. Sterckx, Marie-Louise .. Gouwy, Queenie .. Telka, Shane
.. Doutrelepont, Hugues .. Strack, Maarten .. Heylen, Annelies .. Telka, Tasha
.. Du Bois, Martine .. Swyncop, Muriël .. Hoebeke, Laura .. Turk, Oguzhan Abdulmelik
.. Dumont, Anne Marie .. Tavernier, Paul .. Jacquemyns, Maxim .. Van den Driessche, Anouk
.. Durant, Daniël .. Thielemans, Lea .. Lambrecht, Vincent .. Van Den Eynde, Wouter
.. Edmunds, Clive .. Tielemans, Elza .. Lanckmans, Jonas .. Van Dijk, Jesper
.. Engels, Maria-Helena .. Valle Moro, Maria .. Lanckmans, Simon .. Van Thielen, Tessa
.. Erpelding, Nathalie .. Van Asch, Solange .. Lu, Ding-Ding
.. Exsteen, Walter .. Van Camp, Karel .. Lucas, Glen
.. Fabré, Lisette .. Van Campenhout, Wilfried
.. Gheysens, Godelieve .. Van Capellen, Gisèle
.. Girotto, Alberto .. Van Conkelberghe, Luc
.. Goossens, Flor .. Van De Casteele, Geertrui
.. Gorteman, Anne-Marie .. Van der Straeten, Elza Trainees
.. Guillaume, Michel .. Van Kerckhoven, Leo
.. Gyssens, Paola .. Van Lier, René
.. Hendricx, Philippe .. Van Rossem, Maria .. Benedetti, Sofia .. Mazy, Maxim
.. Hoffstadt, Jacqueline .. Vandeloo, Rita .. Birimgamine, Mugoli .. Oguzhan, Turk
.. Horions, Christiane .. Vanden Baviere, Cécile Elisabeth .. Pinnck, Kris
.. Houben, Guido .. Vanden Baviere, Nelly .. Bukasa, Odiia Axel .. Slepcevic, Julie
.. Huriaux, Thierry .. Vandeweghe, Sylverster .. Chuankid, Boontiya .. Temple, Sophie
.. Jacobs, Ludo .. Vanderstukken, Christel .. Ding Ding, Lu .. Thongbai, Benharong
.. Jessen, Georgette .. Vanhoucke, Wendy .. Duhin, Audrey .. Tiebackx, Matthew
.. Kozloski, Elisabeth .. Vereschaka, Kateryna .. Erkelbout, Kurt .. Vadthanarat, Santhiti
76 . .. Laureys, Myriam .. Verlinden, Hugo .. Etienne, Elisa .. Van De Vondel, Lieven
.. Le Clef, Amaury .. Verswyvel, Myriam .. Finet, Elliot .. Van Den Broucke, Wein
.. Lecomte, Josiane .. Vivignis, Patrick .. Foets, Jasper .. Vandenberghe, Kevin
.. Lenaerts, René .. Wagemans, Emiel .. Heylen, Annelies .. Verelst, Tim
.. Lepage, Pierre .. Wagemans, Philip .. Hoebeke, Laura .. Yian Gouve, Claver
.. Lokadi, Valère .. Wilfert, Sandra .. Jacquemyns, Maxim
.. Lucas, Mireille .. Würsten, Bart .. Lebrun, Thibault
.. Mager, Gertrude .. Wymeersch, Miet .. Marien, Toon
.. Malevez, Philippe .. Masy, Cindy
.. Maton, Bernard
 Guides Honorary research associates

.. Bailly, Francine .. Proost, Alida .. Billiet, Frieda .. Sharp, Cathy

.. Baumers, Maarten .. Silverans, Michel  .. Champluvier, Dominique .. Sonké, Bonaventure
.. Benit, Danielle .. Steensels, Steven .. Compère, Pierre .. Sotiaux, André
.. De Boeck, Marc .. Van Conkelberge, Luc .. Geerinck, Daniel .. Stévart, Tariq
.. De Cock, Marianne .. Vandeloo, Rita .. Jongkind, Carel .. Vanderpoorten, Alain
.. De Cuyper, Jef  .. Van den Broeck, Martine .. Kopalová, Katerina .. Vanderweyen, Arthur
.. Delière, Sandra .. Van Der Herten, Frank .. Malaisse, François .. Vanhecke, Leo
.. Doutrelepont, Hugues .. Van de Vijver, Martine .. Pauwels, Luc .. van der Zon, Ton
.. Geernaert, Inge .. van Lidth, Bénédicte  .. Rammeloo, Jan .. Verstraete, Brecht
.. Kozloski, Elisabeth .. Verschueren, Frans .. Robbrecht, Elmar .. Vrijdaghs, Alexander
.. Loconte, Francesco .. Wayembergh, Lisiane .. Sanín, David
.. Mortelmans, Bieke .. Wymeersch, Miet 

77 .
 Botanic Garden Meise
A portrait
A Garden with a long history…
Older than Belgium, the earliest roots of the Botanic Garden can
be traced to 1796, meaning that we have been working with plants
for over two centuries. The Garden comprises 92 ha and includes
many historical buildings, including a castle that dates back to the
12th century.
With unique collections…
The Garden has a large herbarium housing about 4 million speci-
mens and containing the largest Rosa herbarium of the world and
important historical collections from Brazil and Central Africa. It
also has a botanical library holding over 200,000 volumes, com-
prising publications from the 15th century to modern day.
With the mission to conserve plants…
The Garden holds a collection of about 18,000 different kinds of
living plants, among which several are threatened, such as the Lau-
rent cycad (Encephalartos laurentianus). The Garden also houses an
internationally recognised seed bank including inter alia the seeds
of numerous wild bean species.
To study plants and fungi...
Activities of our scientists to inventory and study plant, fungal and
algal diversity span the globe; from Antarctica to the rainforests
of Congo. The scientific work focuses on the correct and scien-
tific identification of plant species. What are the characteristics
of a species? How many species are there? How do we distinguish
one species from another? Without answers to these questions no
economic activity based on plants or plant derived product could
function. Knowing the correct scientific name of a species is the
key that unlocks all information on this species. Correctly iden-
tifying a species helps us to recognise poisonous species from re-
lated medicinal ones. It helps us to establish if a plant species is
threatened by extinction and in need of protection.
To teach about plant diversity...
On a yearly basis approximately 125,000 people visit the Garden.
Most of our visitors come to explore the glasshouses and the gar-
dens, but, of course, there is more. Our scientists fully realise the
importance of sharing their knowledge, passion and enthusiasm
with the public. Botanic Garden Meise has developed a range of
tools to spread knowledge about plants and to raise public aware-
ness about plant conservation. Our website www.botanicgarden.
be offers an overview of current activities in the Garden.
78 .
Our mission
Building a sustainable future through discovery,
research and conservation of plants.
Our values
The six guiding values of the Garden, necessary to keep us
growing and flourishing.
One team, one mission
The staff of the Botanic Garden are team players.
We combine our talents to realise our goals; through
a process of consultation we are all responsible for
its success.
Respect for diversity
We should be respectful and considerate to every-
one with whom we come into contact. We appreci-
ate their individuality and diversity. Our colleagues
deserve respectful cooperation and professionalism.
Delivering a professional service
In performing our tasks and developing new ideas
we always have the needs and expectations of our
internal and external customers in mind.
An eye for sustainability
As professionals in environmental sciences, we have
a responsibility for being role models in creating a
healthy environment for people and plants.
Open communication
We should communicate openly and honestly in
our daily work and decision making. Sharing use-
ful information serves the common good. Problems
should be shared and solutions sought together with
discretion where necessary.
Strive for excellence
Our objectives are achieved to a high standard in an
efficient and honest manner. We are always open to
constructive criticism and we should critically eval-
uate our work and dare to make adjustments where
necessary.
Board of Directors
Mark Andries – government commissioner
Steven Dessein – secretary
Véronique Halloin – member
Chantal Kaufmann – member
Jan Rammeloo – president
Jan Schaerlaekens – member
Raf Suys – government commissioner
Ann Van Dievoet – member
Mieke Van Gramberen – member
Yoeri Vastersavendts – member
Mieke Verbeken – member
Renate Wesselingh – member

Scientific council
Representatives from universities
Flemish community
Geert Angenon – Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Olivier Honnay – KU Leuven
Ivan Nijs – Universiteit Antwerpen
Mieke Verbeken (president)– Universiteit Gent

Representatives from universities

French community
Frédérik De Laender – Université de Namur
Pierre Meerts – Université libre de Bruxelles
Claire Périlleux – Université de Liège
Renate Wesselingh – Louvain-la-Neuve

International representatives
Pete Lowry – Missouri Botanical Garden, USA
Michelle Price – Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques
de la Ville de Genève, Switzerland
Erik Smets – Naturalis The Netherlands

79 .
Representatives Botanic Garden Meise
Elke Bellefroid
Petra De Block
Jérôme Degreef
Régine Fabri

Secretary
Steven Dessein
Text : Botanic Garden Meise &
BotanicalValues
This report is also available in Dutch and French and can
be downloaded from our website www.botanicgarden.be

The Botanic Garden is supported by the

Flemish Community and French Community

Printed on recycled FSC labeled paper with plant-based

inks, without ip alcohol or solvents.

© Botanic Garden Meise, 2017

 Botanic Garden Meise
Nieuwelaan 38, 1860 Meise
www.botanicgardenmeise.be