News published: 23 July 2026

BGCI is pleased to announce the launch of PlantSearch Accessions, a major new enhancement to PlantSearch that enables botanic gardens to upload, manage and share accession-level data about their living collections alongside their taxon records.

PlantSearch has long helped botanic gardens showcase the diversity of their living collections, supporting conservation, research and collaboration across the global botanic garden community. With the introduction of PlantSearch Accessions, gardens can now share richer information about the origin, management and history of their collections, providing a stronger foundation for conservation planning and international collaboration.

Discover the new PlantSearch Accessions

To introduce the new functionality, we’ve produced a short overview of PlantSearch. This introductory overview shows how to upload and manage accession-level data, track specimens, record provenance, and strengthen living collections documentation. The video also introduces the support resources that will accompany the launch, such as the forthcoming Guide to Accessioning Living Collections. You will also learn how this PlantSearch links to collection policy and standards in living collections.

Note: we are still changing some of the wording and field placements in the system.

The overview covers:

• uploading accession data from CSV files
• matching your data to PlantSearch fields
• managing accession and specimen records
• recording provenance, origin and collection information
• updating specimen status through time
• downloading and managing your accession records
• how does PlantSearch links to collection policy and data standards.

Why accession data matters

Recording plants at the species level tells us what is held in collections.

Recording accession data tells us which material is held, where it came from, how it was acquired, how many specimens exist and how they change over time. This richer information strengthens conservation planning, supports research and improves collaboration between botanic gardens worldwide.

PlantSearch Accessions has been designed to complement existing collections management systems, allowing gardens to upload and share key accession information while continuing to manage their collections using their preferred software.

Join one of our upcoming sessions

To help gardens get started, BGCI will be running a series of online activities over the coming months, including:

• live demonstrations
• drop-in support sessions
• webinars
• practical guidance on uploading accession data.

Whether your garden is already managing accession records or is just beginning to document its collections, these sessions will help you get the most from PlantSearch Accessions.

Coming in August

In August, BGCI will publish the Guide to Accessioning Living Collections, a practical resource developed alongside PlantSearch Accessions.

The guide introduces core accessioning concepts, explains recommended documentation standards and provides guidance on the key accession fields used within PlantSearch. It has been developed to help gardens record accession data consistently, making information easier to share and compare across the global botanic garden community.

We look forward to working with gardens around the world as they begin using PlantSearch Accessions to strengthen global plant conservation.

Acknowledgements

The development of this version of BGCI’s PlantSearch was made possible with the support of the following organisations:

We acknowledge support from IMLS grants: MG-60-19-0064-19 and MG-245575-OMS-20

Data in BGCI’s PlantSearch is made possible by valuable data contributions by thousands of botanic garden staff around the world.

BGCI is grateful to Keith Damiani for designing and building the PlantSearch system and web app. And to the work of BGCI and BGCI-US previous employees, Abby Meyer, Suzanne Sharrock and Merion Jones. Thank you.