More than fifty students and postdoctoral fellows used nearly 200 bags of potting soil to replant a record-breaking 4800 cuttings and seedlings into potting bags at the FABI nursery on 21 April. The plants consisted of various Eucalyptus clones and Acacia mearnsii seedlings supplied by member companies of the Tree Protection Co-operative Programme (TPCP) and will be utilised for experimental purposes. 

The plants are central to the research conducted by different programmes at FABI. They are used to test for resistance to insect pests and pathogens as well as research in biological control. Students and postdoctoral fellows in the TPCP, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence in Tree Health Biotechnology (CTHB) and the Forest Molecular Genetics (FMG) programmes took part in the exercise. As always, what was perceived as hard work early in the day, evolved into a fun-filled team-building exercise with the added benefit of doing something constructive and experiencing a sense of achievement, rewarded with pizza, soft drinks and a braai. They even made an impromptu choir to congratulate FABI director, Prof. Mike Wingfield, on his birthday.