Lathyrus

Sylvia was awarded her National Plant Collection in 1992. She has written on Lathyrus in several publications including the Royal Horticultural Society’s ‘The Garden’ and more recently in ‘Curtis’s Botanical Magazine’. In 1996, Plant Heritage published her book ‘Lathyrus-Cousins of the Sweet Pea’. Although since 1900 several papers and articles had been published about Lathyrus and descriptions in many floras, no book devoted exclusively to the genus had been published before. In 1996, Sylvia and the Plant Heritage Cambridgeshire Group organised a weekend conference on Lathyrus. The conference attracted enthusiasts from Japan, Russia, and New Zealand as well as the UK. Profressor W T Stearn was the guest speaker. Sylvia has exhibited at Royal Horticultural Shows, in particular in the Plant Heritage Marquee at Hampton Court Palace Flower Show on several occasions.

 

Sylvia has travelled to search for, to identify and photograph Lathyrus growing in their natural habitats. Destinations include Slovenia, Dolomites, Cyprus, North Cyprus, Chile and Argentina. In Turkey, she has visited the lakes area around Egirdir, Black Sea Coast and Pontic Alps, Mount Ararat and Lake Van areas. Sylvia has lectured widely on her collection and has made available plant material to enable the reintroduction of many plants. Alongside, she has been a principal member of the Cambridgeshire Plant Heritage Group and in 2006, the group recognised her contribution to plant conservation when she became a Vice President of the group.