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International collaboration
National Botanic Garden takes part in the international seed exchange among world botanic gardens since its establishment in 1956. Our seed exchange partners are more than 600 botanic gardens and arboreta in the entire world. Seeds of known provenance are collected and seed exchange catalogue (Index Seminum) containing about 500 accessions is issued each year. In the last two years it is distributed only via e-mail. About 500 botanic gardens and arboreta have active seed exchange contacts with NBG each year. It means, not only receive NBG Index Seminum, but also send their seed requests and/or Index Seminum back, and accordingly get requested seeds and send them to NBG. For example, in 2008 Index Seminum was sent to 635 partners, received were from 223 ones, sent 1777 and received 1567 seed samples.
In a result of many years collaboration with Goetheborg Botanic Garden (SE) and Kew Royal Botanic Gardens (UK) fundamental taxonomic and molecular researches in Iris, Muscari, and Allium were carried out. As a result of joint expeditions to Turkey, Caucasus and Middle East and additional investigations, several new species were discovered. Collections of world importance of onion species (Allium), Juno irises (Iris subgen. Scorpiris), and Muscari arecreated in the NBG. Some results of this work are published:
N. Ikinci, T. Hall, Dolores Lledó, J. J. Clarkson, N. Tillie, A. Seisums, T. Saito, Madeline Harley and M. W. Chase. Molecular phylogenetics of the juno irises, Iris subgenus Scorpiris (Iridaceae), based on six plastid markers. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 167, 2011, pp. 281–300.
In the framework of collaboration with the Vilnius University several joint expeditions were organized. The expedition-conference „Biological diversity and cultural heritage of Kupiškis region”, and meeting of bilateral working group were organized. Results of this collaboration were published in a poster presentation and a paper:
„Jakobsone G., Dapkūniene S., Cepurīte B., Belogrudova I.: The conservation possibilities of endangered orchid species of Latvia and Lithuania”. Monographs of Botanical Gardens (European botanic gardens together towards the implementation of plant conservation strategies), Warsaw/Rogow, Poland, Vol.1: 2008, 65-68.)
In a spirit of collaboration with Tartu University Botanic Garden, mutual visits of the groups of specialists are frequent; dendrology specialists of NBG performed expertises of historical trees of Tartu Botanic Garden using acoustic tomography. In 2011, the joint project “Smart Garden” (INTERREG Estonia-Latvia cross board program project) has been launched, which will facilitate creation of modern informative infrastructure in both gardens.
Most important foreign collaborators
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Name and Organization |
Type of collaboration |
Country |
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Vilnius University |
Treaty of collaboration, bilateral working group and expeditions, Exchange of plant tissue culture and plant material for in situ/ex situ plant conservation purposes joint publications |
Lithuania |
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Tartu University |
Expert consulting, ERDF cross board cooperation project |
Estonia |
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Šauliai University |
Regular yearly exhibitions in Šauliai University Botanic Garden |
Lithuania |
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Botanical Garden of the Byelorussian Academy of Sciences |
Treaty of collaboration |
Byelorussia |
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Kew, Royal Botanic Garden |
Joint scientific publications |
United Kingdom |
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Göteborg University Botanic Garden |
Joint expeditions |
Sweden |
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About 500 botanic gardens and arboreta |
International Seed Exchange (active contacts - feedback at last once in the year) |
67 countries |
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Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI); http://www.BGCI.org |
NBG is presented in the BGCI database “Garden Search”, NBG collections are presented in the database „Plant Search”, the information and plant material is sent for scientific purposes to the users (botanic gardens, researchers and students) after their requests. |
World organization |
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EU Botanic Gardens Consortium; http://plantnetwork.org/consortium/index.html |
NBG, as a representative of Latvian botanic gardens, takes part in the Consortium meetings, where goals and strategy of European botanic gardens in context of biological diversity conservation are discussed, such as European botanic gardens conferences (Eurogard) are prepared and other questions discussed. |
European Union |
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Association of Baltic Botanic Gardens |
Meetings of Botanic gardens of the Baltic states are organized; approx. each 2 years the book of collected articles „Baltic Botanic Gardens” is published (according to rotation principle), where the information about the recent activities in Lithuanian, Estonian and Latvian gardens are published, as well as papers about research, collections and other concerning questions. |
Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia |
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Organization of the Botanic Gardens of the Baltic Sea Region |
Each year the conference „Botanic Gardens network for the Development of the Baltic Sea Region” is organized in one of the states of the Baltic Sea region. The main topics - research, education, nature conservation, staff exchange, exhibitions and other ways of collaboration. The conference in 2012 is planned in Latvia and Lithuania, NBG is one of the organizers |
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Russia (St-Petersburg & Kaliningrad reg.), Sweden |
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The Nordic Arboretum Union |
The NBG representative takes part in the NAU meetings with reports on dendrological topics. |
Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Iceland |
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