PlantSearch

Contribute your garden's taxa list
Data used in PlantSearch
Citing PlantSearch
Data user agreement
Data Request Form
Acknowledgements

About PlantSearch

BGCI’s PlantSearch is a globally unique tool for accessing and sharing information about living collections maintained by botanic gardens and similar organisations. PlantSearch connects living botanical collections to conservationists, educators, horticulturists, researchers, policy makers and many others who are working to save and understand plant diversity.

PlantSearch includes taxon-level data from over 1,100 collections of living/viable plants, seeds, pollen, and tissues, located around the world. Data is provided and managed by staff at individual organisations. BGCI welcomes garden staff to register as an Editor to review and update their collection’s PlantSearch information on an annual basis.

Use PlantSearch to

Locate and connect with taxa and collections of interest.
Identify global and regional trends in botanic garden ex situ conservation capacity.
Get your organisation on its way to achieving BGCI Accreditation.
Identify botanic garden progress toward implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework, the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), and other relevant international policies.

PlantSearch general information (in English)

PlantSearch general information (in Spanish)

Contribute your garden’s taxa list

Every living collection can make important contributions to plant conservation via BGCI’s PlantSearch:

Data contribution is quick, easy and free.
Find out the conservation value of your collections, and receive a names audit.
Connect your collections, staff and facilities to the global botanical community.
Expand the collective knowledge of plant diversity in cultivation.

Before you are able to contribute data to PlantSearch on behalf of your organisation:

Your garden must be listed in GardenSearch. If your garden is not yet listed in GardenSearch please fill in the New Garden Request Form.
You need to register as an Editor and be affiliated with your garden. If you are not yet affiliated with a garden, you will be asked to fill out the Request for Garden Affiliation form, to demonstrate your formal affiliation with (e.g., you work for) the garden in question. BGCI will contact you via email when your request has been reviewed.
Once registered and affiliated with your garden you can contribute data to PlantSearch,

To contribute your garden’s collections data:

Step 1: Log into PlantSearch by connecting to your garden listed in GardenSearch. VIDEO 1
Step 2: Upload updated taxa list(s) (suggest with authorities) for plants, seeds, tissues, and other germplasm maintained by your garden. VIDEO 2
Step 3: Review your taxa listed in PlantSearch, and correct any errors and update your plant records as needed. VIDEO 3

Check the Guide to BGCI PlantSearch

PlantSearch Upload

PlantSearch manage your taxa list

Data used in PlantSearch

PlantSearch aligns collections data with these additional datasets:

ThreatSearch
GlobalTreeSearch
World Flora Online (WFO)
World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)
International Plant Names Index (IPNI)
Exceptional Species Status
Crop Wild Relative
CITES
IUCN Red List

Citing PlantSearch

Please cite any use of PlantSearch data as:

BGCI. [YEAR ACCESSED]. PlantSearch. Botanic Gardens Conservation International. Richmond, U.K. Available at https://plantsearch.bgci.org. Accessed on DD/MM/YYYY.

Data user agreement

Please refer to BGCI Data User Agreement when downloading data from PlantSearch.

Data Request Form

Much of the data BGCI stores and curates are available through BGCI online tools, however, if you require information which is not available through the online downloads, please fill out this Data Request Form. The information required in the form enables BGCI to provide advice and determine what data will be most useful to you and your project. Once submitted a member of BGCI will review the request and follow up with you via email.