Last Wednesday I had the pleasure of listening to Dicky Clymo give a lecture at QMW University of London entitled “The life and afterlife of bog-moss: why does it matter?”:
It was described as a Valedictory Lecture, although I suspect that Dicky is still a long way from hanging up his famous yellow oilskin waterproofs:
Dicky’s lecture was, as always, a master-class in how to turn the complicated into something simple and clear:
– in this case involving a couple of drinks bottles and a pair of miniature watering cans…
…to demonstrate the way in which Sphagnum bog moss is able to acidify rainwater.
But he was also able to make it clear that things which seem simple, such as his delightful animation of bog growth, can hide deeply complex processes.
Dicky Clymo at his best…
