LIVING COLLECTIONS

The Shuttleworth Botanic Garden is committed to the conservation, curation and education about its Collection, particularly the plants of global temperate island biomes, both physical and metaphorical, highlighting the importance of biodiversity and the effects of climate change on plants, plant populations, adaptation and resilience.

The Gardens vision to create a scientifically valuable and educational landscape that showcases species diversity and highlights the importance of conserving ecological systems is supported by our mission to:

Celebrate, conserve and explore plants, nature and landscapes

The living collections are divided into Botanical or Display collections.

Botanical Collections include plants of taxonomic and ecological significance including endangered species, displayed in thematic and ecological landscapes that allow for the representation and interactive experience with plant and species diversity. These collections will be used for education and interpretation on the importance of biodiversity and the effects of climate change on plants, plant populations, adaptation and resilience consistent with individual landscape design criteria. These Collections will be available for research and as ex-situ conservation collections.

Display Collections showcase horticultural plants with ornamental or edible value, which can be seasonal, temporary or a crop to be harvested. These collections will be invaluable in providing horticultural best practices for sustainable plant production using environmentally friendly products with its basis in organic growing principles.

Our Living Plant Collection is being established mainly from seed within the onsite nursery, with plant material being sourced to include as wide a genetic range as possible to represent species diversity. Provenanced plant material is the primary target for acquisition, meeting the legal requirements for plant movement and in alignment with global strategies for plant conservation. The Shuttleworth Botanic Gardens Living Collection Policy recognizes the value of these initiatives, its importance and the opportunities it provides for partnerships and as an organization it will work to ensure that its Living Collection is managed and developed in a manner which respects the principles in practice.