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The Role of Seed Banks in Preserving Agricultural Biodiversity

The value of preserving native and wild seed species has never been greater than in today's world. Agricultural behemoths are expanding their proprietary varieties, endangering original and heirloom species. Collecting and storing seed species ensures a steady supply of plant populations that may be threatened by modified seed, habitat loss, and a lack of diversity. Preserving native and wild seed species is an important step toward preserving a healthy habitat. Furthermore, it is simple, takes up little space, and the seed can be stored season after season. As a home gardener, you can start a seed bank with little effort by saving seed from your own plants or by sourcing regional and native seed.

Seed banks are a critical part of preserving agricultural biodiversity. They preserve genetic diversity and provide access to lost, threatened, or rare species. Currently, thousands of seed banks exist in the world that stores seeds from around the globe. Seeds may be collected from plants grown in controlled environments or from wild-growing native plants—both providing important sources for food and medicine. Additionally, collecting seed provides invaluable information about plants’ characteristics, such as their ability to resist disease or adapt to different climates. This knowledge can be used by breeders to create stronger plant varieties that will withstand changing environmental conditions and local pests or diseases.

WHAT ARE SEED BANKS AND HOW DO THEY WORK?

A seed bank, also known as a germplasm bank, is a location where suitable conditions are maintained to conserve seed specimens of various plant species (wild or cultivated). The goal is simple: to save as many plants as possible for future generations.

Seed specimens are kept in conditions of constant low humidity, low temperature, and little or no light or darkness. "Most plants in the world produce seeds that can survive drying and freezing," according to a document from the European Native Seed Conservation Network (ENSCONET). According to the document, "after collection and proper sorting, seeds are cleaned and dehydrated to 5% moisture." They are typically stored and sealed in containers or multi-layered foil packets, which are then stored in boxes and distributed on bank shelves. The containers are labelled with the variety, the location where the samples were collected, and their characteristics.

The Importance of Seed Banks

1. Crop Diversity Preservation

This is the most important reason for seed storage. Crops, like humans and animals, are adapted to different environmental conditions in order to survive. Because of this adaptive nature, different types of the same species exist. As a result, it is critical that such diversity be preserved.

2. Climate Change Protection

For several decades, the world has been witnessing radical climate change, which has been accelerated by increased industrial pollution. With such drastic changes, crop extinction is unavoidable. The danger of total extinction of certain crop species is eliminated when seeds are stored in seed banks.

3. Natural Disaster Protection

Natural disasters are unforeseeable events that have the potential to wipe out crops entirely. The foresight of storing seeds in a seed bank could save a situation like this. Malaysian rice paddies, for example, were wiped out by the 2004 tsunami, and international seed banks provided farmers with seeds that allowed them to restart their farming operations.

4. Resistance to Disease

Crop diseases are extremely contagious and lethal to plants. A severe outbreak could completely wipe out crops. Where diseases have ravaged crops and left no traces for farmers to start from, seed banks can step in and provide them with seeds that will allow them to start from scratch.

5. Provide research seed material

Seeds stored in seed banks can be easily made available to scientists and researchers who want to study these seeds, particularly if such research could lead to increased crop production.

6. Protection against man-made disasters

Man-made disasters such as war and oil spills have the potential to wipe out crops. Farmers find it difficult to continue farming in war-torn counties, and crops frequently disappear. Seeds can be retrieved from seed banks and replanted once peace is restored.

How are seeds selected and collected for the seed banks?

Experts and volunteers from all over the world are carefully collecting seeds for seed banks. Strict criteria ensure that only the best seeds are collected and stored. Many other botanic gardens, in addition to Kew, have seed banks. As additional insurance, it is common practice for each bank to send a portion of its valuable seeds to another bank.

How long do seeds survive in a seed bank?

Depending on the species, seeds stored in these vaults could be dormant for hundreds or even thousands of years. However, because nothing like this has been attempted before, these predictions can only be based on models.

There have been a few reports and examples of ancient seeds germinating in pyramids and ancient palaces, but data on seed longevity is limited. We can only rely on models until the first stored seeds reach 1,000 years old. The best prediction is that seeds will survive in vaults for at least 150 years, if not much longer.

What are the seeds used for?

Seeds stored at the bank may be owned by collectors or curators, and the owner has the final say on how the seeds are used.

Some banks only keep agricultural crop seeds as insurance against genetic loss in our food varieties. Others may only keep seeds from rare species and be very picky about how these seeds are used. Alternatively, they may contain a large number of seeds for a variety of purposes ranging from population restocking to research projects and plant breeding programs.

A good example is the clover glycine (Glycine latrobeana), a rare Australian herb. In 2007, approximately 1,200 seeds were shipped to the United Kingdom for storage at the Millenium Seed Bank. When bushfires destroyed the small plant's main habitat in early 2020, the seed bank was able to send 250 seeds back to Australia to help it reestablish in the wild.

conclusion

Seed banks are an important tool for preserving agricultural biodiversity. By collecting and storing seeds from around the world, they provide us with a valuable insurance policy against crop loss due to natural disasters and diseases, as well as man-made catastrophes. They are also invaluable sources of research material and can be used to reintroduce rare or endangered plant species back into their original habitats. With this in mind, it is essential that seed banks receive the attention and funding they deserve so that we can safeguard our future food security.

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