Julie S. Denslow, research ecologist and team leader for the Institute of Pacific Island Forestry, USDA Forest Service, presented Weeds in Paradise: Invasive Plants in the Pacific Islands at the University of Miami. The 20th Gifford Arboretum Lecture was part of the Coalition for Excellence in Tropical Botany (CETroB) lecture series. Montgomery Botanical Center (MBC) hosted Dr. Denslow in the Arthur Montgomery Guesthouse.
“Dr. Denslow’s research on invasive plants is of great importance for botanical conservation,” states Dr. Patrick Griffith, MBC executive director. “MBC recently completed a cycad conservation expedition on Guam and Rota and a palm conservation expedition in the Hawaiian Archipelago — invasive species biology has a role in each of these Pacific Island conservation concerns.”
The Gifford Arboretum celebrated its restoration this year, with a special rededication of the Arboretum collections following the extensive recovery work required after the 2005 hurricane season. With funding from the IMLS, John Cozza, Aldridge Curator at the Gifford Arboretum, developed and implemented a new master plan designed to maximize the educational and research use of the Arboretum collections.