The Master’s Degree Program, taught in English, “Valorization and Sustainable Development of Mountain Areas” – MOUNTAINSIDE, promoted by UNIMONT, the Alpine hub of the University of Milan, offers a unique educational path that integrates multidisciplinary knowledge with hands-on activities carried out in the heart of the Alps.
During the past few weeks, students from the Master’s Degree Course “Valorisation and Sustainable Development of Mountain Areas” – MOUNTAINSIDE took part to a practical workshop run by Prof. Simon Pierce, University of Milan – UNIMONT, as part of the course ‘Mountain ecosystems and biodiversity valorisation‘. During this they were able to collaborate in hand pollination of the rare orchid Cypripedium calceolus (the European Lady’s-Slipper orchid) at a secret location in the Italian alps, to help produce seeds and aid the recruitment of seedlings to ‘reinforce’ the population. Seeds are either left to disperse naturally or are sown directly at the site in a plot where the seedlings can be monitored in the future.
Watch the video story of the experience
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Note that Cypripedium calceolus is a protected species, as an Annex II species of the EU Habitats Directive. The students shown did not collect material or handle seeds, which were handled by Prof. Simon Pierce, and no material of C. calceolus of any kind (leaf, rhizome, flower, pollen, fruit, seed or whole plants) was collected and/or transported off site. Seed was handled and sown entirely in situ at the site of the mother plants, with no material of C. calceolus or other orchid species being transported.