Thanks, Chadwell ji On 18 Dec 2016 11:53 p.m., "C CHADWELL" <chrischadwell...@btinternet.com> wrote:
> Dear Anil > > Thanks for contributing such wise comments. > > It MIGHT not be too late to salvage at least some of the pressed specimens > languishing > "behind-the-scenes" at the Urusvati Institute at Naggar, Kulu Valley. > > Just needs those senior enough to secure access (as I stated, I tried and > failed three times) > for someone able to assess the state of the specimens. > > It could be, even 80+ years later, that sufficient specimens remain in > satisfactory condition to justify > something being done with them. > > Clearly, a proportion will have been lost through rotting away and/or > insect infestation. Perhaps the > vast majority *but dried specimens last centuries under suitable > conditions. The 19th Century pressed* > *specimens from India at Kew are still (mostly) in good condition.* > > And the hard, time-consuming work of IDENTIFICATION has already been done > by Dr R Stewart and others at Ann Arbor, > University of Michigan Herbarium - which as I said, holds the BEST set of > pressed specimens (with good field notes) of > Kulu Valley and Lahaul specimens IN ANY HERBARIUM IN THE WORLD. *Though > the nomenclature of many specimens* > *will have to be brought up-to-date (as members see happening all-the-time > on this site).* > > It would just be case of cross-referencing the collection numbers, then > mounting, labelling and storing in cabinets. > The specimens at Ann Arbor are a DUPLICATE SET of the *ORIGINAL/FIRST SET > collected for Roerich's Institute.* > > The big expense (not to mention time & effort & skill) of exploring in the > mountains of Kulu Valley & Lahaul was undertaken > in the 1930s. > > It really has been such a waste. > > The involvement of THAKUR RUP CHAND (from Lahaul's leading family at that > time) in the collections was significant - very much Chand & > Koelz specimens, rather than just 'Koelz' specimens, not forgetting the > considerable efforts of Wangyel and Rinchen Gialtsen > (who I awarded posthumous Kohli Memorial Gold Medals to in 2009 see: > https://sites.google.com/a/shpa.org.uk/main/kohli-memorial-gold-medals). > > > IF sufficient specimens remain, they could form the basis of a QUALITY > reference HERBARIUM for the region - all housed in a > great location. CONSIDERABLE sums are raised by the admission charge for > the Roerich Art Gallery. Surely, some of this could > be spent on a project to FINALLY complete one of Roerich's ORIGINAL > objectives of having a REFERENCE collection of the region's > flora *which INDIA should be PROUD OF.* > > *I am in an ideal position to assist any projects that may materialise.* > > *As for your photo - unfortunately it is not Cerastium cerastioides. > Probably a Stellaria.* > > > Best Wishes, > > > Chris Chadwell > > > 81 Parlaunt Road > SLOUGH > SL3 8BE > UK > > www.shpa.org.uk > > > > > > > ------------------------------ > *From:* Anil Thakur <anilthakur2...@gmail.com> > *To:* J. M. Garg <jmga...@gmail.com> > *Cc:* efloraofindia <indiantreepix@googlegroups.com>; C CHADWELL < > chrischadwell...@btinternet.com> > *Sent:* Sunday, 18 December 2016, 16:46 > *Subject:* Re: Fwd: Gypsophila cerastioides in the New York Botanical > Garden > > What a sorry state of affairs? It is pity on the managers of science, > who mostly happen to be non scientists and bureaucrats. One who wants > to do something, has many constraints. > One will wonder that a very small state H.P. has approximately 8% of > Indian plant diversity, but no representative herbarium. > > Attaching my photograph of Gypsophila cerastioides, clicked at > Churdhar in May 2015. > > Regards > ANIL THAKUR > > > On Dec 5, 2016 6:04 PM, "J.M. Garg" <jmga...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > Forwarding again for validation please. > > > > > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > > From: C CHADWELL <chrischadwell...@btinternet.com> > > Date: 23 November 2016 at 01:08 > > Subject: Gypsophila cerastioides in the New York Botanical Garden > > To: "J.M. Garg" <jmga...@gmail.com> > > > > > > Have noticed recent posts re: Dr Rawat identifying a specimen from > Narkanda as > > Gypsophila cerastioides. > > > > Came across this plant growing in the rockery of the New York Botanical > Garden, the Bronx. > > > > Do members considered it has been correctly labelled? > > > > I was on a lecture tour (mostly to North American Rock Garden Society > chapters) which provided > > the opportunity for me to spend some time in the herbaria of the New > York Botanical Garden (when > > speaking to the Manhattan Chapter) and Ann Arbor, Michigan (when > speaking to the Great Lakes > > Chapter, NARGS and gave a seminar at the University about the 'Himalayan > Travels of Walter Koelz' > > who with Thakur Rup Chand from Lahoul and their local collectors made > extensive collections in the > > NW Himalaya including Kulu Valley, Lahoul & Ladakh in the 1930s; Koelz > was a zoologist engaged by > > Russian NIcholas Roerich for the Urusvati Institute at Naggar, Kulu > Valley and pressed a Kohli Memorial > > Gold Medal to the Herbarium, see: https://sites.google.com/a/ > shpa.org.uk/main/kohli-memorial-gold-medals (scroll > > down to 2011). > > > > Duplicate sets of pressed specimens collected for Roerich went to Ann > Arbor and the New York Botanical Garden, > > where they were subsequently identified and labelled by Dr Ralph Stewart > after he retired from being Principal of > > the Gordon College, Rawalpindi. Stewart, whilst working in Pakistan > regularly visited the New York Botanic Garden > > Herbarium. > > > > The best quality set of pressed specimens (with good field notes) I know > of the flora of upper Kulu Valley and > > Lahoul anywhere in the world are at Ann Arbor, Michigan - far better > than Kew or the Natural History Museum in > > London. What a shame that the duplicate set of these lies, abandoned > for 80 years "behind-the-scenes" at the > > Urusvati Institute - no doubt many of the thousands of specimens have > rotted away or become infested by insects. > > What a waste of such a hard-won resource. I have tried, on 3 occasions, > to gain access to what is left of the > > specimens to undertake an initial assessment but have not been permitted > entry...... > > > > This saddens me. Those is a senior position should have done something > about it decades ago! > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Best Wishes, > > > > > > Chris Chadwell > > > > > > 81 Parlaunt Road > > SLOUGH > > SL3 8BE > > UK > > > > www.shpa.org.uk > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > > With regards, > > J.M.Garg > > > > 'Creating awareness of Indian Flora & Fauna' > > > > Winner of Wipro-NFS Sparrow Awards 2014 for efloraofindia. > > > > For identification, learning, discussion & documentation of Indian > Flora, please visit/ join our Efloraofindia Google e-group (largest in the > world- around 2700 members & 2,40,000 messages on 31.3.16) or Efloraofindia > website (with a species database of more than 11,000 species & 2,20,000 > images). > > > > The whole world uses my Image Resource of more than a thousand species & > eight thousand images of Birds, Butterflies, Plants etc. (arranged > alphabetically & place-wise). You can also use them for free as per > Creative Commons license attached with each image. > > > > Also author of 'A Photoguide to the Birds of Kolkata & Common Birds of > India'. > > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "efloraofindia" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to indiantreepix+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send an email to indiantreepix@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
