The Environment Agency Abu Dhabi has planted 25 seedlings of a rare tree that can live for a century.
The sarh tree seedlings were planted in Jebel Hafeet’s National Park to help preserve local plant species and enhance biodiversity in the emirate.
A 100-year-old sarh tree was discovered in Abu Dhabi in July 2020. Afterwards, Environment Agency Abu Dhabi prepared a study on conserving the species.
The sarh (Maerua crassifolia) is the first tree of its kind to be identified in the emirate. Previously, the species had been seen only in Ras Al Khaimah.
It was found east of Al Ain near the Oman border as part of a project by the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi to preserve and grow indigenous trees.
The area’s rocky outcrop is difficult to reach, and may have provided protection for the tree.
It was found on private land and identified by a member of the community who contacted the agency.
Residents believed the sarh to be more than a century old and they once used its delicate branches to apply kohl eyeliner.
In traditional medicine, sahr leaves are boiled to treat colic and crushed into powder to use as a poultice for bone fractures.
It was the fourth tree species to be included in the agency’s seeding programme.
The sarh grows up to nine metres high and has small, oval leaves.
Its dense branches flower in January and February and produce small, prickly fruit that ripens in March and April.
It can be found across Africa and in Jordan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Oman.
What is graphene?
Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged like honeycomb.
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were "playing about" with sticky tape and graphite - the material used as "lead" in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But as they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment had led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
At the time, many believed it was impossible for such thin crystalline materials to be stable. But examined under a microscope, the material remained stable, and when tested was found to have incredible properties.
It is many times times stronger than steel, yet incredibly lightweight and flexible. It is electrically and thermally conductive but also transparent. The world's first 2D material, it is one million times thinner than the diameter of a single human hair.
But the 'sticky tape' method would not work on an industrial scale. Since then, scientists have been working on manufacturing graphene, to make use of its incredible properties.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. Their discovery meant physicists could study a new class of two-dimensional materials with unique properties.
