Gifts from individuals are rarely accepted. People frequently offer us beautiful specimens, but in most cases, they do not meet the acquisition criteria of the Jardin botanique, which must work with growing space that is increasingly restricted. Here are some of the Garden’s acquisition criteria:
- Details of the plant’s identity must be known (genus, species and cultivar);
- The origin of the plant must be provided;
- The plant must have been acquired in compliance with applicable national and international laws and regulations;
- The plant must complete one of the Jardin botanique’s existing collections;
- The plant must be healthy and free of pests.
Exceptional donations
Donations sometimes come from specialist collectors who turn over part of their collection. That was the case, for example, with the acquisition in 1984 of remarkable bonsais from Mr. Wu Yee-Sun of Hong Kong.
In 2011, the Jardin also received part of Mr. Marcel Lecoufle’s valuable collection of Madagascar orchids by way of the Société des Orchidophiles de Montréal.
These plants are often complementary to one of the Jardin botanique’s principal collections.
Text adapted from the article by Denis Barabé and Édith Morin in the journal Quatre-Temps, Vol. 17, No. 1.