I wish I could spend $1500 on a tre but the scrooge in me says that I could buy 100 t.specissomossia (waratah for the non latin public)and have more enjoyment from them

(It will get cheaper if only because if they are so desirable every nursery propagator will spend time working out how to grow them; and apparently they grow readily from seed, cuttings and division)

As gardeners, I think we need to take a step back and consider that the initial rush on these plants will be huge, and the $1500 price tag will probably prove to be a bargain. They will be resold all over the world while the supply remains limited, but last night's story indicated that the nursery was having no problems propagating new trees : 100,000 per year is their target.

As a living fossil, the appeal goes way beyond traditional horticulture, and it will doubtless become *the* pot plant for the wealthy in 2006. Inevitably, they will move on to something else, the nurseries will get more stock, and (hopefully) the Wollemi will begin popping up everywhere from suburban frontyards to public parks.

From a personal point of view, I'd consider one as a pot specimen, but I have an aversion to conifers in the garden. I think I'll stick with my rainforest trees - grand survivors in their own right.

Whilst I appreciate the thrust of your argument:

Any wonder people just stick to roses and camellias....

I disagree. Large numbers of Australian do stick to Ye Olde English (or Mediterranean) garden for a number of reasons, but I'm not sure that selling the Wollemi for 6.95 down at K-Mart will change that. We've all seen Bunya/Hoop/Norfolk Island pines towering over houses, planted years before the owners realised what they had on their hands - large conifers arent for everyone. As I said in my earlier post, the price will come down, but I'd be wary of unleashing this 40m tree on a suburban 1/4 acre block. I know that many of the forum members have significantly larger blocks, but they are the privileged few - the rest of us have to make do with under 1000 sq m.

Basic Facts:
- As the Wollemi Pine is a naturally occurring species there is no way to protect the IP (intellectual property) with a PBR etc (Plant Breeder's Rights are exclusive commercial rights to a registered variety).
- It does not produce a lot of seed and is difficult to collect
- Said to be reasonably easy to propagate from cuttings
- Understand in-vitro propagation also being trialed for international exports

What does this mean and why the big marketing spin ?
• Basically, once the plants are sold anyone with the right experience can propagate the Wollemi Pine and sell it.
• This is why there is a strong marketing effort by the Wollemi Pine Foundation.
• By having an established brand they hope to be able to continue selling plants under their name and thus raise funds for conservation

Why would you want a Wollemi Pine:
• Besides contributing to the conservation of this and other rare species, you would have a great subject for conversations with friends!
• They grow in a wide range of conditions, including extreme temperature ranges (see below)
• Grow in very low light and in pots – so a great indoor plant
• Etc, etc ..

You will be able to buy one at reasonable dollars sometime after April 2006

Additional Information:
Tim Entwisle (Executive Director Botanic Gardens Trust) talks to Sarah McDonald on 702 ABC Sydney — 18 October 2005
http://www.rbgsyd.gov.au/information_about_plants/Talking_Plants
• Eleven years ago the Wollemi Pine (Wollemia nobilis) was discovered by National Parks Officer David Noble in a remote canyon in the Wollemi National Park near Sydney. It was a plant thought to be extinct, with fossils going back to the age of dinosaurs.
• This weekend the first ever cultivated Wollemi Pines (Wollemia nobilis) will be auctioned by Sotheby’s from the Royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney. The auction will be worldwide, and bids will be taken by telephone and absentee forms.
• Every Wollemi Pine sold will return a royalty to fund the conservation of the Wollemi Pines in the wild and other threatened and endangered species.
• These first 292 trees to be sold are the first generation of Wollemi Pines, grown from the first cuttings taken from the wild population. Each tree comes with a pedigree tracing it back to its parent tree in the wild. The auction will include 148 lots, ranging from single trees to an avenue of 20 trees from the same parent. The trees are mostly 5 years old and 2-3 metres tall.
• Proceeds from some lots will go entirely to conservation through organisations like the Botanic Gardens Trust here in Sydney and Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, England.
• ‘Wollemi Australia’, a joint venture between the Qld Government Department of Primary Industries and Birkdale Nursery, won a tender six years ago to propagate this tree under licence from the Botanic Gardens Trust (our staff propagated the first specimens and provided the first information on its biology and horticulture).
• In April 2006 there will a general release of Wollemi Pines in retail outlets, including specimens from 40 cm to 1.5 m high.
• So where can you grow it? Just about anywhere. It grows wonderfully on all our three sites (near the harbour, in the Blue Mountains and near Campbelltown). It has been trialled at temperatures from -5 to 45 degrees C, and can withstand temperatures as low as -12 degrees C. David Attenborough recently planted one outdoors at Kew which we expect to cope with the coming London winter.
• It makes a good feature tree for large gardens and parks but also works well as an indoor or outdoor pot plant.
• Why commercialise? This the first time a rare plant has been commercialised at this scale. It will protect the natural habitat of the species by taking away the incentive for collectors to visit the site and take valuable seed or cuttings. This also reduces the chance of fire and pathogens being brought into the site. With plants growing all over the world, it is an insurance policy to protect the species itself, although the most important thing is to care for the ancient trees in their natural habitat. And it brings royalties back to conservation to help look after this species and other rare plants. And best of all, it’s an attractive garden plant…

Additional reading (copy and paste into a browser):

http://www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/recovery/w-nobilis/

http://www.abc.net.au/rn/science/ockham/stories/s171118.htm

Now we just need someone with the time to put the same effort into other threatened and rare OZ species !!!!!!

What I keep thinking about, is, all these WPines that have been propagated, are all clones.

Is it good environmental practice to have a bunch of clones all over the place, what about diversity of species.

I guess there are already a lot of plants that are clones already, like all the cultivars.

More likely a 'founder effect' I'd have thought, with those individuals in the gorge as the climate changed around them probably already being related and then losing more variation due to chance.

'I wonder also if this limited variation is a factor hindering sexual reproduction.'

Since they are producing viable seed, inbreeding depression doesn't seem to be a real problem at the moment. Establishing a seed bank should preserve the present diversity almost indefintely and with each tree being capable of living up to 1000 years they won't dwindle away to nothing too soon.