Plant conservation

Plant conservation protects plant species, populations, and habitats from decline or extinction through research, management, and legal protections.

IUCN Red List: A global system for assessing species’ extinction risk using standardized criteria. Its categories help prioritize plant species facing the greatest risk.
Protected area: A geographically defined area managed to conserve nature and associated cultural values over the long term. Protected areas can retain intact plant communities and their ecological processes.
Biodiversity loss: The decline in the variety of life at genetic, species, and ecosystem levels. Plant extinction contributes to broader losses of biodiversity.
Climate change adaptation: Adjustments that reduce harm or improve resilience in response to actual or expected climate change. Conservation strategies must account for shifting conditions across plant ranges.
Botanical garden: An institution that maintains documented collections of living plants for research, conservation, and public education. Living collections can safeguard threatened plants and support propagation research.
Ex situ conservation: Conservation of biodiversity outside its natural habitat, including in seed banks and botanical gardens. It provides safeguards when protecting plants in their habitats is not enough.
Ecosystem services: The benefits people obtain from ecosystems, including food, water regulation, and cultural values. Plant conservation helps sustain services provided by plant communities.
Conservation genetics: The application of genetic methods and theory to conserving biodiversity and managing small or threatened populations. Genetic evidence informs decisions about isolated and declining plant populations.
Seed bank: A facility that stores seeds under controlled conditions to preserve genetic material for future use. Stored seeds provide an insurance collection for many threatened plant species.
In situ conservation: Conservation of species within their natural habitats and ecosystems. It maintains plants alongside the ecological relationships they depend on.

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