Inspired by the gift of a book called “The Concise British Flora in Colour” by the Reverend William Keble Martin, Mark explored the wonderful world of plants and how they can help the police solve crimes. Beautiful slides of plants, flowers and landscapes accompanied a fascinating talk about Mark’s career as one of only two United Kingdom Forensic Botanists. A bed of brambles, a pillow of ivy and an Ash tree helped Mark solve one crime. He explored famous crimes such as that of Charles Lindbergh in which the tracing of a special wood from a specific tree in a particular area was the defining factor in prosecuting the criminal.
Rubus Fructicosus – the common bramble – is one of Mark’s favourite plants and the position and colour of this plant at a crime scene can help determine when a crime was committed. Pollen from the fuchsia woolly thistle is insect-borne so if that is found at a crime scene it will not have travelled far. An unusual slide of the attractive shapes of Diatoms made of silica was shown as these are used to determine whether or not drowning was a cause of death. He concluded with a stunning slide of the white iris which has been spread all over the world from Southern Spain due to its connection to Islam.