The flower is called Silene stenophylla, and thanks to a team of Russian scientists, it is the oldest plant ever to be regenerated. The regeneration has been so successful that the flower can easily produce viable seeds and grow. The regeneration process was made possible by a piece of fruit and seeds that were stuck in Siberian permafrost, containing the makeup for Silene stenophylla.
It seems the experiment also proved that permafrost can serve as a natural preserver for ancient life forms. The regeneration of this flower has been a bit of a watershed, as it’s now paved the way for further plant regenerations and has opened the door for further research into permafrost as a biological preserver.
All of this was possible thanks to a squirrel that burrowed into the ground to leave some food. Svetlana Yashina, who led the regeneration team, says that the flower looks much like its modern counterpart, and has adapted very well into nature. The team hopes that animal tissue is in the future of regeneration.
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