A plant that scientists believed had become extinct 100 years ago has been
found by a hiker on the British island of St Helena in the South Atlantic. A
single St Helena boxwood (Mellissia begonifolia), a species unique to
the island, is growing on a slope above the sea.
Unfortunately, the plant is being attacked by mealy bugs and moth larvae so
is, according to the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh, “unlikely to survive”.
51¶¯Âþs at the garden are attempting to germinate seeds and root cuttings
from the plant to preserve the species.
