Conservation research
Life on earth is critically dependent on plants and fungi. Plants feed us, provide us with medicine, fibre and timber, maintain soil fertility and oxygenate the air we breathe. Most plants have beneficial mycorrhizal relationships with fungi, and fungi play crucial roles in litter and nutrient cycling.
Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne actively contributes to research on conservation of Victoria's plants and fungi, in fields such as rare plant translocation and orchid symbiotic germination. Ex situ conservation initiatives include the Victorian Conservation Seedbank and the Rare and Threatened Collection of living plants.
