The Future: Future-proofing seeds

In this final episode of Unearthed: The need for seeds, Cate Blanchett looks ahead to the next 25 years of the Millennium Seed Bank – and beyond.

First stop: space. Dr Anne Visscher is a Research Fellow in the seed and stress biology team. She shares her pioneering work sending seeds to the International Space Station, revealing how experiments in orbit are helping scientists understand how plants might survive extreme environments — from future planets to a changing Earth.

Back on the ground, Senior Research Leader in seed biology Dr Louise Colville takes Cate into the cryogenic labs to uncover how scientists are developing new preservation techniques for seeds too fragile for conventional storage.

The MSB’s mission is also growing worldwide. Megan Engelhardt, Seed Bank Manager at Missouri Botanical Garden, USA, and James Amponsah, Head of the Tree Seed Centre at Forestry Research Institute of Ghana, explain how Kew’s training and expertise are helping them to share their knowledge across the USA and Ghana.

Finally, Cate reflects on what she’s learned, banking on the knowledge that something as small as a seed can provide one of the greatest solutions to our planet’s future.

Unearthed - The need for seeds is a Fresh Air production for the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Series Producer: Hannah Fisher, Executive Producer: Annie Day, Director of Content: Michaela Hallam. Sound Design by Dan King.

With special thanks to everyone at Wakehurst and the Millennium Seed bank who helped with the production behind the scenes.

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