The Role of Botanical Gardens, Seed Banks, and Arboreta in Biodiversity Conservation

Botanical research and botanical gardens have had a long history, originating for practicalities such as medicinal uses. This module covers historical and current roles of botanical gardens and other plant collections, including arboreta, seed banks, and herbaria. Many botanical gardens are involved in long-term research (e.g., climate change) and public education. Additionally, botanical gardens and the like are exceedingly important in plant conservation due to both their extensive ex-situ collections and accumulated knowledge.