Over past centuries, Europe has seen the introduction of thousands of plant species from outside the region and these have provided countless economic and social benefits in a range of fields, including agriculture, horticulture, forestry and medicine. For the past 500 years or so, botanic gardens have played a significant role in this process.

However an unintended consequence of the introduction of ‘exotic’ plant species into Europe has been the inadvertent escape of some of these from managed environments into native habitats, where they pose a threat to natural plant communities. The significance of the impact of such Invasive Alien Species is now well recognised and considered one of the most challenging issues faced by environmental conservationists today.

In recognition of the problem, the Council of Europe established a Group of Experts to consider the impacts of alien invasive species on European biodiversity. They agreed to develop a series of Codes of Conducts aimed at making relevant industries and institutions more aware of the risks for native biodiversity of the non-native species they handle.

The European Code of Conduct for Botanic Gardens was published in 2013 and aims to provide guidance for botanic garden staff on the steps they can take to ensure the safe and controlled management of non-native plant species within their collections. Although developed specifically for the European region, the Code of Conduct is considered applicable to botanic gardens worldwide.