Narrow leaf campion, member of the carnation family.

Silene stenophylla, or narrow leaf campion, is the oldest plant to be regenerated successfully. A team of Russian scientists regenerated the plant from samples preserved in the Siberian permafrost. The fruit and seeds were found in ancient squirrel burrows, approximately 125 feet below the current surface level.

The frozen plant samples, consisting of the fruit and seeds of the plant, were discovered in 2007 with an estimated age between 30,000 and 32,000 years old. The success of the plant regeneration, from such an old sample, is paving the way for future research on the preservation of biological species for future generations.

On July 16^th, the Today in America TV magazine posted a story on the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway which relies on permafrost for the permanent storage of the world’s main food bearing crops in seed form.