Preservation
Many wild orchids today are at risk of extinction due to over-collection and destruction of their native habitats. Dozens of countries are working together through CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) to curb the exploitation of wild plants and animals and to help ensure that international trade does not threaten their survival.
However, despite these regulations, illegally imported plants—many of which are orchids--are regularly confiscated. In 2002, for example, orchids made up over 75 percent of the more than 10,000 plants seized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
In 1990 The New York Botanical Garden was designated a Plant Rescue Center by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service to care for such plants. Thousands of plants, including hundreds of orchids from India, Mexico, Peru, the Philippines, and Thailand, have arrived here in very poor condition. Through careful research of their climactic needs and the application of appropriate horticultural techniques, the Garden has successfully brought a majority of these ailing specimens back to health. Many are on display year-round in the Conservatory's rain forest galleries. During The Orchid Show, some of these rescued plants will be on display along with Dendrobium orchids in the Thekla E. Johnson Orchid Rotunda, on the first floor of the Library building.
To read about the rescue of one particularly special orchid, click here.
Research
Garden scientists travel the world searching for orchids and other exotic plants, setting up camp in remote sites as diverse as South Pacific islands and Andes mountaintops. Staff botanists work with local scientists to understand how plants are adapted to their native habitats and how they are related to other plant species. This knowledge learned in the field and in the laboratory leads to a better understanding of plant biology and ecology and ultimately helps to protect plants from extinction by pulling together the information necessary to conserve their habitats. Learn more about the Garden’s scientific work and its research on the vanilla orchid, the only orchid of agricultural value. Some of the findings by the Garden’s scientists can be viewed in the exhibition Plants and Fungi: Ten Current Research Stories in the Britton Science Rotunda and Gallery in the Library building. To download select audiovisual presentations, click here.
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