Herbaceous Ornamental Plant Germplasm Conservation and Use

Preservation of herbaceous ornamental crop germplasm has been traditionally accomplished by private and public sector flower breeding programs, rather than through a publicly funded government agency. The recent founding of the Ornamental Crop Germplasm Center by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, as part of the U.S. National Plant Germplasm System, has brought attention to the critical needs of preserving floricultural crop germplasm for worldwide research and development. Preservation of a crop’s germplasm in toto is a complicated but critical scientific endeavor, which will ensure future flower crop development. There are numerous challenges in germplasm preservation and accessibility, including collection of germplasm, determining crop centers of origin, conservation methodologies, genepool creation, conservation concepts, genebank procedures, adherence to governing international conventions for germplasm collection & conservation, and use of plant protection mechanisms. Future development possibilities and global networking opportunities are important for continued ex situ and in situ conservation of floriculture crop germplasm.