Living plant conservation
Recovery plans are important strategies for plant conservation to reduce species extinction.
The Horticulture Branch at the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne (RBG Melbourne) plays an important role in assisting botanists with recovery plans by conducting seed and other propagation trials. Staff also participate in field collecting trips to source plant material for collections and landscape development.
Botanic gardens throughout the world play a significant role in plant conservation.
Conservation of rare and threatened species, remnant vegetation or collections of plants is carried out in line with state, national or international conservation plans for the ex situ (out of their natural state) protection of plant biodiversity.
Threatened species recovery plans are an important conservation strategy as they may include propagation, seed collection and studies, reintroduction and other strategies to reduce the likelihood of species extinction.
The Melbourne Gardens Horticulture Branch plays a role in conservation efforts at RBG Melbourne by assisting botanists with some aspects of threatened species recovery plans.
Nursery staff work with botanists to conduct seed and other propagation trials and have been trained to use the laboratory at the National Herbarium of Victoria, which is based at the Gardens.
Horticulture staff accompanied botanists from the Victorian Conservation Seedbank on field collecting tips as part of the Millennium Seed Bank Project. This provided staff with learning opportunities and enabled them to source plant material for the development of the Rare and Threatened Species Collection, which is a collection of rare and or threatened plant species from south-eastern Australia.
By growing these species in Melbourne we’re are able to monitor their progress, learn about their cultivation requirements and conserve them ex situ for years to come.
Last updated 21 Jan 2010
