The Wuhan Botanical Garden (WBG) of CAS – 中国科学院武汉植物园 was founded in 1956. As one of China’s leading ex-situ conservation institutions, WBG is home to more than 10,000 plant species and varieties across 16 specialty gardens. Notably, the Kiwifruit Garden and the National Kiwifruit Germplasm Repository conserve over 70 percent of the world’s kiwifruit species. The Aquatic Plant Garden, the largest of its kind globally, is another key feature. Other prominent gardens include the Wild Fruit Garden, the Rare and Endangered Plant Garden, and the Medicinal Herb Garden, which focus on the conservation of species from central China.
WBG conducts research in biodiversity conservation, sustainable utilization, aquatic botany, freshwater quality, and watershed ecology, particularly in relation to major hydraulic engineering projects. It houses three key laboratories:
- CAS Key Laboratory of Aquatic Botany and Watershed Ecology
- CAS Key Laboratory of Plant Germplasm Enhancement and Specialty Agriculture
- Hubei Provincial Key Laboratory of Wetland Evolution and Ecological Restoration
Additionally, WBG manages five field research stations, including:
- Three Gorges Reservoir Research Station
- Danjiangkou Wetland Research Station
- Qinling Watershed Ecology Research Station
WBG also hosts the Horticulture Branch of the CAS Research Center for Green Agricultural Technology and the Hunan Provincial Research Center for Horticultural Engineering and Technology. It is home to the Kiwifruit Section of the Chinese Society of Horticultural Science and the Botanical Society of Hubei Province. The garden also hosts the editorial office of the scientific journal Plant Science Journal.
More information: http://english.wbg.cas.cn.
