Student Project: Horticultural protocols for experimental studies of eyebrights (Euphrasia, Orobanchaceae)

• Published in: Sibbaldia : an occasional series of horticultural notes from the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh no. 20; pp. 23 - 38
• Main Authors: Brown, Max, Becher, Hannes, Laverack, Giles, Twyford, Alex
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh 04-06-2021
• ISSN: 2513-9231; 2513-9231
• DOI: 10.24823/Sibbaldia.2021.319

Parasitic plants are particularly challenging to cultivate as the growth conditions must be suitable for the parasite, the host, and their interaction. Here, we review our progress growing British native eyebrights (Euphrasia), a group of hemiparasitic plants found in diverse habitats in Britain and Ireland. We consider the protocols required to grow them under a range of conditions, including the laboratory, in pot trials, in cultivated fields, and in the wild. We highlight the need to use seed stratification to break seed dormancy, to replicate planting to overcome low seed viability, and to manage host plants to avoid competition. While Euphrasia can be successfully grown in different environments more work is required to develop reliable horticultural protocols for growing plants under natural conditions.