One wintery morning in 2014, somebody stole a tiny and extremely rare waterlily from the collection at The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was never seen again, and they were never caught.

James Wong begins his journey into the mysterious world of plants and fungi by looking at the criminal underworld of plant trafficking.

Speaking to Border Force, Kew scientists and advisors, James learns about the little-appreciated fight to protect plants from extinction, exploitation, and smugglers hiding on the web – and how many of us are guilty of ‘plant blindness’.

Subscribe to Unearthed: Mysteries from an unseen world on your podcast app to get a new episode each fortnight.

And you can share the show or join the conversation on social media with the hashtag #KewUnearthed.

Follow @kewgardens for more insights into the magical, mysterious world of plants and fungi.

www.kew.org

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/border-force

One wintery morning in 2014, somebody stole a tiny and extremely rare waterlily from the collection at The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was never seen again, and they were never caught.
James Wong begins his journey into the mysterious world of plants and fungi by looking at the criminal underworld of plant trafficking.
Speaking to Border Force, Kew scientists and advisors, James learns about the little-appreciated fight to protect plants from extinction, exploitation, and smugglers hiding on the web &ndash; and how many of us are guilty of &lsquo;plant blindness&rsquo;.
Subscribe to Unearthed: Mysteries from an unseen world on your podcast app to get a new episode each fortnight.
And you can share the show or join the conversation on social media with the hashtag #KewUnearthed.
Follow @kewgardens for more insights into the magical, mysterious world of plants and fungi.
<a href="http://www.kew.org/">www.kew.org</a>
<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/border-force">https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/border-force</a>

Wildlife is becoming extinct at an alarming rate and habitats are under strain. What can nature itself teach us about how to heal our planet and support biodiversity?

In Unearthed, the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew invites you to explore how plant and fungal knowledge can be harnessed to change our world for the better.

Series 3 “Unearthed: Nature needs us”, takes us on a journey from soil to sky, scaling the tangle of nature’s systems and interactions to help us tackle the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change.

Dr Mya-Rose Craig (AKA “Birdgirl”) hears from Kew experts, as well as communities and organisations across the world who are combining learnings in science, wildlife, conservation and restoration to work within the bounds of nature and help halt the devastating impacts of unsustainable human activity.

From farming practises and food production to land use, pollinators, traditional techniques, tech and forestry to tackling poverty and inequality through environmental policy, join us as we untangle the secrets of nature and seek solutions to our world’s problems.

Subscribe to all episodes and catch up on earlier series of Unearthed from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew on this feed.

Wildlife is becoming extinct at an alarming rate and habitats are under strain. What can nature itself teach us about how to heal our planet and support biodiversity?
In Unearthed, the Royal <a href="https://www.kew.org/">Botanic Gardens Kew</a> invites you to explore how plant and fungal knowledge can be harnessed to change our world for the better.
Series 3 “Unearthed: Nature needs us”, takes us on a journey from soil to sky, scaling the tangle of nature’s systems and interactions to help us tackle the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change.
<a href="https://www.birdgirluk.com/">Dr Mya-Rose Craig</a> (AKA “Birdgirl”) hears from Kew experts, as well as communities and organisations across the world who are combining learnings in science, wildlife, conservation and restoration to work within the bounds of nature and help halt the devastating impacts of unsustainable human activity.
From farming practises and food production to land use, pollinators, traditional techniques, tech and forestry to tackling poverty and inequality through environmental policy, join us as we untangle the secrets of nature and seek solutions to our world’s problems.
Subscribe to all episodes and catch up on earlier series of Unearthed from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew on this feed.

Unearthed - Nature needs us

Wildlife is becoming extinct at an alarming rate and habitats are under strain. What can nature itself teach us about how to heal our planet and support biodiversity?

In Unearthed, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew invites you to explore how plant and fungal knowledge can be harnessed to change our world for the better.

Series 3 “Unearthed: Nature needs us”, takes us on a journey from soil to sky, scaling the tangle of nature’s systems and interactions to help us tackle the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change.

Dr Mya-Rose Craig (AKA “Birdgirl”) hears from Kew experts, as well as communities and organisations across the world who are combining learnings in science, wildlife, conservation and restoration to work within the bounds of nature and help halt the devastating impacts of unsustainable human activity.

From farming practises and food production to land use, pollinators, traditional techniques, tech and forestry to tackling poverty and inequality through environmental policy, join us as we untangle the secrets of nature and seek solutions to our world’s problems.

Subscribe to all episodes and catch up on earlier series of Unearthed from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew on this feed.

Wildlife is becoming extinct at an alarming rate and habitats are under strain. What can nature itself teach us about how to heal our planet and support biodiversity?
In Unearthed, the Royal <a href="https://www.kew.org/">Botanic Gardens, Kew</a> invites you to explore how plant and fungal knowledge can be harnessed to change our world for the better.
Series 3 “Unearthed: Nature needs us”, takes us on a journey from soil to sky, scaling the tangle of nature’s systems and interactions to help us tackle the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change.
<a href="https://www.birdgirluk.com/">Dr Mya-Rose Craig</a> (AKA “Birdgirl”) hears from Kew experts, as well as communities and organisations across the world who are combining learnings in science, wildlife, conservation and restoration to work within the bounds of nature and help halt the devastating impacts of unsustainable human activity.
From farming practises and food production to land use, pollinators, traditional techniques, tech and forestry to tackling poverty and inequality through environmental policy, join us as we untangle the secrets of nature and seek solutions to our world’s problems.
Subscribe to all episodes and catch up on earlier series of Unearthed from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew on this feed.

Uncovering a multi-million pound smuggling trade

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/2e9a850c-e6b9-48c2-afec-a8f8010f70f4/clips/9425dfa6-44d0-4285-9208-ac09010b2463/transcript

How do nature’s wonderful systems all fit together? And how can science help us understand these for better conservation and restoration of species?

In the final episode of Unearthed: Nature needs us from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Mya-Rose Craig (AKA “Birdgirl”) takes a tour of mountain systems, weather and climate, migration, cloud forests and coastlines.

Find out how Kew are learning from and mapping mysterious and delicate desert ecosystems in South America and hear about an innovative cross-community project in Colombia’s forests. Then ZSL’s Henry Hakkinen reveals some astonishing facts about migratory species

Our wonderful world is a delicate balance of systems and conservation can happen at every scale – from back gardens and window boxes to landscapes hundreds of miles wide. But what needs to happen at a policy level to support and inspire the work of individuals and groups who are putting the science into action for nature?

Isabel Milligan of Great Yellow is joined by Green Alliance’s Heather Plumpton and WWF’s Nitika Agarwal to ask what governments and the commercial sector must do to support biodiversity around the world.

Subscribe to this podcast to catch up on earlier episodes of Unearthed.

You can find out more about the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and support their cutting-edge conservation research and training at Kew.org.

How do nature’s wonderful systems all fit together? And how can science help us understand these for better conservation and restoration of species?
In the final episode of Unearthed: Nature needs us from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, <a href="https://www.birdgirluk.com/">Mya-Rose Craig</a> (AKA “Birdgirl”) takes a tour of mountain systems, weather and climate, migration, cloud forests and coastlines.
Find out how Kew are learning from and mapping mysterious and delicate desert ecosystems in South America and hear about an innovative cross-community project in <a href="https://conocelasquinchas.com/about-us/">Colombia</a>’s forests. Then <a href="https://www.zsl.org/">ZSL’</a>s Henry Hakkinen reveals some astonishing facts about migratory species
Our wonderful world is a delicate balance of systems and conservation can happen at every scale – from back gardens and window boxes to landscapes hundreds of miles wide. But what needs to happen at a policy level to support and inspire the work of individuals and groups who are putting the science into action for nature?
Isabel Milligan of <a href="https://greatyellow.earth/">Great Yellow</a> is joined by <a href="https://green-alliance.org.uk/">Green Alliance’s</a> Heather Plumpton and <a href="https://wwf.panda.org/">WWF’</a>s Nitika Agarwal to ask what governments and the commercial sector must do to support biodiversity around the world.
Subscribe to this podcast to catch up on earlier episodes of Unearthed.
You can find out more about the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and support their cutting-edge conservation research and training at <a href="https://www.kew.org/">Kew.org</a>.

How does nature network?

In this episode of Unearthed: Nature needs us from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew we ask what it means to regenerate and restore degraded forests and landscapes, and why so many tree-planting projects in the past have failed.

Mya-Rose Craig (AKA “Birdgirl”) hears from Kew’s scientists including Dr James Borrell, and Dr Kate Hardwick, who are leading the conversation and collaborating with other organisations on how to reforest and regenerate successfully. We visit the Woodland Trust’sHome Farm, one of the largest native woodland creation sites in Southern England, where Forest Research Forest Ecologist Nicola Cotterill is carrying out research into how genetic diversity can help strengthen the ecosystem.

Building back ecosystems with genetic resilience is essential if we want species to survive disease, pests, climate change and other changing conditions. But UK woodlands are facing an enormous battle with Ash Dieback. We meet Russell Croft, the Arboretum Manager at Wakehurst, to find out how the team there are managing the effects of this disease in Kew’s own beautiful nature reserve.

And Professor Katie Field explores how the past can unveil incredible insights into our forest ecosystems.

Further afield, in Thailand, Professor Steve Elliot and the team at FORRU (Forest Research and Restoration Unit at Chiang Mai University) are working with schools to run innovative seed collection and tree planting programmes as part of their version of the “Framework Species Methodology”. As they restore tropical forest ecosystems, Steve explains how all wildlife is prospering from planting the right kinds of species in open areas close to natural forest.

Kew’s partnerships around the world enable amazing seed conservation and species reintroduction work to take place and this has extended to the volcanic slopes of Indonesia, at Mount Ciremai. Dr Dian Latifah and Dr Yayan Kusuma from BRIN tell us about this exciting project.

Dr Kate Hardwick has worked heavily in the tropics and is Restoration Coordinator for Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank Programme. She and Isabella Tree – Wilding author and co-owner of the Knepp Estate in Sussex – unpick the differences between rewilding and regeneration and explore the spectrum of conservation that encompasses these approaches to regenerating our landscapes.

Subscribe to this podcast to catch up on earlier episodes of Unearthed and to enjoy a new episode every fortnight.

You can find out more about the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and support their cutting-edge conservation research and training at Kew.org.

In this episode of Unearthed: Nature needs us from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew we ask what it means to regenerate and restore degraded forests and landscapes, and why so many tree-planting projects in the past have failed.
<a href="https://www.birdgirluk.com/">Mya-Rose Craig</a> (AKA “Birdgirl”) hears from Kew’s scientists including Dr <a href="https://www.kew.org/science/our-science/people/james-s-borrell">James Borrell</a>, and Dr <a href="https://www.kew.org/science/our-science/people/kate-a-hardwick">Kate Hardwick</a>, who are leading the conversation and collaborating with other organisations on how to reforest and regenerate successfully. We visit the <a href="https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/">Woodland Trust’s</a> <a href="https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/woods/home-farm/">Home Farm</a>, one of the largest native woodland creation sites in Southern England, where <a href="https://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/">Forest Research</a> Forest Ecologist <a href="https://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/staff/nicola-cotterill/">Nicola Cotterill</a> is carrying out research into how genetic diversity can help strengthen the ecosystem.
Building back ecosystems with genetic resilience is essential if we want species to survive disease, pests, climate change and other changing conditions. But UK woodlands are facing an enormous battle with <a href="https://www.kew.org/read-and-watch/ash-dieback-wakehurst">Ash Dieback</a>. We meet Russell Croft, the Arboretum Manager at Wakehurst, to find out how the team there are managing the effects of this disease in Kew’s own beautiful nature reserve.
And <a href="https://x.com/katiefield4?lang=en">Professor Katie Field</a> explores how the past can unveil incredible insights into our forest ecosystems.
Further afield, in Thailand, Professor Steve Elliot and the team at <a href="https://www.forru.org/">FORRU</a> (Forest Research and Restoration Unit at Chiang Mai University) are working with schools to run innovative seed collection and tree planting programmes as part of their version of the “Framework Species Methodology”. As they restore tropical forest ecosystems, Steve explains how all wildlife is prospering from planting the right kinds of species in open areas close to natural forest.
Kew’s partnerships around the world enable amazing seed conservation and species reintroduction work to take place and this has extended to the volcanic slopes of Indonesia, at Mount Ciremai. <a href="https://x.com/dianl2311?lang=en-GB">Dr Dian Latifah</a> and <a href="https://www.uni-goettingen.de/en/dr.+yayan+wahyu+candra+kusuma/667831.html">Dr Yayan Kusuma</a> from <a href="https://www.brin.go.id/en">BRIN</a> tell us about this exciting project.
<a href="https://www.kew.org/science/our-science/people/kate-a-hardwick">Dr Kate Hardwick</a> has worked heavily in the tropics and is Restoration Coordinator for Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank Programme. She and <a href="https://www.isabellatree.com/">Isabella Tree</a> – Wilding author and co-owner of the K<a href="https://knepp.co.uk/knepp-estate/">nepp Estate in Sussex</a> – unpick the differences between rewilding and regeneration and explore the spectrum of conservation that encompasses these approaches to regenerating our landscapes.
Subscribe to this podcast to catch up on earlier episodes of Unearthed and to enjoy a new episode every fortnight.
You can find out more about the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and support their cutting-edge conservation research and training at <a href="https://www.kew.org/">Kew.org</a>.

How can we regenerate nature successfully?

As well as our beloved bees, pollinators include wasps, moths, hoverflies, butterflies, beetles, bats and birds.  There are about 1,500 different insect species helping plants reproduce in the UK alone, and without them our world would be less colourful, less nutritious and less diverse.

In this episode of Unearthed: Nature needs us from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew hear how pollinator health supports the health of humans and the planet. Dr Mya-Rose Craig finds out how the biodiversity of our habitats can support pollinators against the pressures they face from climate change and human activity.

Professor Phil Stevenson busts myths surrounding honeybee conservation projects whilst Professor Adam Hart looks at how we might need to change our outlooks and practises for the good of our pollinating friends.

We also dive into the wonder of meadow and prairie habitats with Iain Parkinson at Wakehurst, Kew’s wild botanic garden, and with Great Yellow’sIsabel Milligan.

Ever wondered how healthy your garden is for pollinators? Advolly Richmond considers how our social history has impacted the plight of plant-pollinator relationships.

Then it’s into the landscape at Wakehurst with Dr Janine Griffiths-Lee and Chantelle Lindsay. Nature Unlockedis building a new bee bank here and inviting visitors to contribute to important research. In Dodoma in Tanzania, one researcher tells us how his team have been working with smallholder farmers to gain a host of benefits, including improved yields, via the growing of pollinator-friendly plants in their field margins.

Finally, the bug-loving Dr Eleanor Drinkwater chats with Phil Stevenson about the important links between plants and wildlife for environmental biodiversity.

Subscribe to this podcast to catch up on earlier episodes of Unearthed and to enjoy a new episode every fortnight.

You can find out more about the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and support their cutting-edge conservation research and training at Kew.org.

As well as our beloved bees, pollinators include wasps, moths, hoverflies, butterflies, beetles, bats and birds.  There are about 1,500 different insect species helping plants reproduce in the UK alone, and without them our world would be less colourful, less nutritious and less diverse.
In this episode of Unearthed: Nature needs us from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew hear how pollinator health supports the health of humans and the planet. <a href="https://www.birdgirluk.com/">Dr Mya-Rose Craig</a> finds out how the biodiversity of our habitats can support pollinators against the pressures they face from climate change and human activity.
<a href="https://www.kew.org/science/our-science/people/phil-stevenson">Professor Phil Stevenson</a> busts myths surrounding honeybee conservation projects whilst <a href="https://x.com/AdamHartScience?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor">Professor Adam Hart</a> looks at how we might need to change our outlooks and practises for the good of our pollinating friends.
We also dive into the wonder of meadow and prairie habitats with Iain Parkinson at Wakehurst, Kew’s wild botanic garden, and with <a href="https://greatyellow.earth/">Great Yellow’s</a> <a href="https://x.com/iz_milligan?lang=en">Isabel Milligan</a>.
Ever wondered how healthy your garden is for pollinators? <a href="https://advolly.co.uk/">Advolly Richmond</a> considers how our social history has impacted the plight of plant-pollinator relationships.
Then it’s into the landscape at Wakehurst with <a href="https://www.kew.org/science/our-science/people/dr-janine-griffiths-lee">Dr Janine Griffiths-Lee</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/chantellenaturelle/?hl=en">Chantelle Lindsay</a>. <a href="https://www.kew.org/wakehurst/nature-unlocked">Nature Unlocked</a>is building a new bee bank here and inviting visitors to contribute to important research. In Dodoma in Tanzania, one researcher tells us how his team have been working with smallholder farmers to gain a host of benefits, including improved yields, via the growing of pollinator-friendly plants in their <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33150065/">field margins</a>.
Finally, the bug-loving <a href="https://www.eleanordrinkwater.com/">Dr Eleanor Drinkwater</a> chats with Phil Stevenson about the important links between plants and wildlife for environmental biodiversity.
Subscribe to this podcast to catch up on earlier episodes of Unearthed and to enjoy a new episode every fortnight.
You can find out more about the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and support their cutting-edge conservation research and training at <a href="https://www.kew.org/">Kew.org</a>.

Uncovering a multi-million pound smuggling trade

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