Living Collections

at Montgomery Botanical Center

Online Collection Database

Basic data on Montgomery Botanical Center’s collections can be found through BG-BASE’s Multi-Site hosted by the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.

Montgomery Botanical Center holds the National Palm Collection and the National Cycad Collection, following a rigorous review by the American Public Gardens Association.

Caring for the Rare

Colonel Robert Montgomery was a serious plant collector who left a significant botanical legacy. In addition to the extensive collections at Montgomery Botanical Center (MBC), several other Montgomery  collections exist. The Montgomery Pinetum, a National Registered Historic Site, is located on the Colonel’s former Connecticut estate. A significant portion of these plantsThe Montgomery Ornamental Conifer Collectionalso forms the core of the recently rededicated Benenson Collection at The New York Botanical Garden. Closer to home, The Montgomery Palmetum is the foundation of Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s palm collection.

At Montgomery Botanical Center, the live plant collections established by Colonel Montgomery, beginning in 1932, shape a historic legacy and a dynamic future. MBC’s collections are continually augmented through ongoing scientific expeditions and international collaboration.

Montgomery Botanical Center is built on live scientific plant collections as the foundation from which all other functions emerge. Research, education, and conservation require excellent collectionsMBC’s collections are rooted in science.

To achieve its purpose, the Montgomery Botanical Center’s skilled staff works together as a team in three closely inter-related departments:
Collections Development, Horticulture & Facilitiesand Administration.

Under their stewardship are thousands of palms and cycads representing hundreds of species, many of which are threatened or endangered in the wild. To protect and perpetuate the genetic diversity of its collections, Montgomery actively builds its populations of cycads and palms by mounting three to five government-sanctioned collecting expeditions each year.

As the plants mature, Montgomery promotes conservation by harvesting the often-rare seeds for distribution to research institutions, botanical gardens, conservatories, and community organizations worldwide through the MBC/FNGLA SeedBank Program, which is the largest of its kind in the U.S.

The varied resources found at the Montgomery Botanical Center augment the scientific value of the palm and cycad collections. Primary is the Montgomery database system. Using BG-BASE, details on the life history of each accession are recorded regularly and stored digitally for easy retrieval. BG-Map tracks the position of each plant. Basic data on Montgomery Botanical Center’s collections can be found through BG-BASE’s Multi-Site hosted by the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.

Researchers, botanical groups, historians, teachers, and students from around the globe come here to tap into Montgomery Botanical Center’s diverse resources. With a guesthouse on site, Montgomery is a 24-hour-a-day functioning laboratory and classroom.

 

Collection Statistics

(as of 2019)

PLANTED IN THE GROUND

 

Totals

 

Taxa

1,125

Accessions

5,619

Plants

14,334

 

 

Palms

 

Taxa: Total

381

Taxa: Wild-collected

305

Accessions: Total

1,973

Accessions: Wild-collected

1,303

Plants: Total

6,501

Plants: Wild-collected

5104

 

 

Cycads 

 

Taxa: Total

235

Taxa: Wild-collected

208

Accessions: Total

1,687

Accessions: Wild-collected

1,416

Plants: Total

5,504

Plants: Wild-collected

4,806

 

 

Gymnosperms (Tropical Conifers) 

 

Taxa: Total

122

Taxa: Wild-collected

52

Accessions: Total

229

Accessions: Wild-collected

78

Plants: Total

297

Plants: Wild-collected

104

 

 

Dicots, other Monocots, etc.

 

Taxa: Total

387

Taxa: Wild-collected

99

Accessions: Total

1,730

Accessions: Wild-collected

995

Plants: Total

2,032

Plants: Wild-collected

1,123

 

 

GROWING IN MBC’s NURSERY  
All Plants  
Taxa 249
Accessions 766
Plants, Seedlings, Seeds 10,595
   
Palms  
Taxa 128
Accessions 397
Plants, Seedlings, Seeds 8,006
   
Cycads  
Taxa 88
Accessions 321
Plants, Seedlings, Seeds 2,201
   
Gymnosperms (Tropical Conifers)   
Taxa 12
Accessions 13
Plants, Seedlings, Seeds, Cuttings 258
   
Dicots, other Monocots, etc.  
Taxa 21
Accessions 35
Plants, Seedlings, Seeds, Cuttings 130

COMBINED TOTAL: GROUNDS AND NURSERY  
All Plants  
Taxa 1,225
Accessions 6,247
Plants, Seedlings, Seeds 24,929
   
Palms  
Taxa 429
Accessions 2,290
Plants, Seedlings, Seeds 14,507
   
Cycads  
Taxa 260
Accessions 1,927
Plants, Seedlings, Seeds 7,705
   
Gymnosperms (Tropical Conifers)   
Taxa 129
Accessions 239
Plants, Seedlings, Seeds, Cuttings 547
   
Dicots, other Monocots, etc.  
Taxa 404
Accessions 1,764
Plants, Seedlings, Seeds, Cuttings 2,170