04:05
rwandaexpress
The Institute of scientific and Technological Research (IRST) is the
place where brains are ever at work, researching about scientific and
technological activities in and outside the Rwanda in order to improve
the agricultural sector and knowledge based agricultural activities.
Through this article, umuhinzi.com wishes to take you
through a particular department of IRST called Herbarium – which is a
place where you will find each and every plant that exists or has ever
existed on Rwanda’s soil.
Vedaste Minani is the head of Herbarium and is mostly specializes in
carrying out research on new plants planted on the Rwandan soil.
“We have a collection of 3600 different plant species. These species
are kept dry and in their original format with trunks, leaves, seeds and
flowers such that at first glance, a person can identify which type it
is” Minani explains.
Details of the stored plants include names and places of where they
were extracted, are all written in both Kinyarwanda and English
versions.
For some people who are not inclined to scientific findings, it is
easy to ask questions of doubt – like: of what importance is such a
collection?
For the IRST scientists, explanation is very important. “Through such
research we are able to determine which plants are on the verge of
extinction and devise means of preserving them. Such collections are
further used for study purposes rather than wasting time to travel
looking for where such plants can be found” Minani explains
Since herbarium stores plants in accordance to their respective
districts of origin, it helps IRST determine which plant best suits
which area, most especially during times when a particular area is to be
given its earlier image.
Such research example include the process of re-planting trees in the
deforested parts of Gishwati forest, in which research findings are
very crucial and the steady developments are put under study at the
institute.
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