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| British Cactus and Succulent Society | |
|---|---|
| Name | British Cactus and Succulent Society |
| Abbreviation | BCSS |
| Founded | 1983 |
| Predecessor | National Cactus and Succulent Society |
| Type | Learned society |
| Region served | United Kingdom |
| Headquarters | London |
| Membership | c. 3,000 |
British Cactus and Succulent Society The British Cactus and Succulent Society is a UK-based learned society dedicated to the cultivation, study, conservation and appreciation of cacti and other succulents. It operates through a network of regional branches, specialist groups and national committees to support amateur growers, professional botanists and horticulturalists across the United Kingdom and to liaise with international bodies concerned with succulents.
Founded in the early 20th century through a series of amalgamations of local clubs and national groups, the Society's roots intersect with the histories of the Royal Horticultural Society, the Linnean Society, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, the Natural History Museum, and the University of Oxford Botanic Garden. Its development was influenced by figures associated with the Royal Society, the British Museum (Natural History), the Chelsea Flower Show, the Royal Horticultural Society’s Lindley Library, and by exchanges with the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland, the Scottish Native Plant Society, and the Alpine Garden Society. Contacts and correspondence extended to collections and curators at the Eden Project, the National Trust, the Cambridge University Herbarium, the University of Edinburgh, the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and international institutions such as the Missouri Botanical Garden, the New York Botanical Garden, the Jardin des Plantes, and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne.
Throughout its history the Society engaged with conservators, taxonomists and explorers whose work intersected with the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the World Wide Fund for Nature, the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Millennium Seed Bank, and floristic surveys conducted by ZSL, Kew’s Seed Conservation department, and botanical expeditions linked to institutions such as the Smithsonian Institution, the Field Museum, the Australian National Herbarium, and the Instituto de Botánica Darwinion.
The Society is structured with a national council, executive officers and a network of branches modelled after governance seen in organizations like the Charity Commission, the National Trust, the Wildlife Trusts, the Royal Institution, and professional bodies such as the Chartered Institute of Horticulture. Membership attracts amateurs, university botanists from institutions including the University of Cambridge, University of Manchester, University of Glasgow, and Imperial College London, curators from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, researchers affiliated with the Natural History Museum, and horticultural professionals connected to RHS shows and botanical gardens worldwide.
Members collaborate with specialist groups resembling networks within the Botanical Society of Scotland, the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, the Eden Project, the National Botanic Garden of Wales and regional museums such as the Manchester Museum, Bristol Museum & Art Gallery, the Ashmolean, and the National Museums Liverpool. The Society interacts with plant-collecting traditions traced to explorers associated with institutions like the Royal Geographical Society, the Linnean Society and the Royal Society.
The Society organises meetings, lectures and field trips in a pattern similar to events run by the Royal Horticultural Society, the Chelsea Flower Show, the Edinburgh International Science Festival, the RHS Wisley, and university public lecture series at Oxford and Cambridge. Its events include specialist lectures referencing work from Kew, the Eden Project, the Natural History Museum, the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and international partners such as the Botanic Gardens Conservation International, the Missouri Botanical Garden and the New York Botanical Garden.
Field expeditions and collecting trips have historically paralleled botanical surveys by organisations like Fauna & Flora International, the Royal Geographical Society, and the Zoological Society of London, with training and risk management informed by standards from the Health and Safety Executive and professional practices used by the British Antarctic Survey. The Society also participates in collaborative events with the Alpine Garden Society, the Hardy Plant Society, the Cactus and Succulent Society of America, and the Sociedad Botánica de México.
The Society publishes journals and newsletters that promote taxonomic, horticultural and conservation research in the manner of academic outlets such as the Kew Bulletin, the Edinburgh Journal of Botany, Curtis's Botanical Magazine, the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, and the Journal of Ecology. Contributors include academics from universities such as University of Birmingham, University of Leeds, Queen Mary University of London, and the University of Southampton, as well as curators and researchers from Kew, the Natural History Museum, and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.
Research topics covered include taxonomy akin to work by the International Plant Names Index collaborators, phylogenetics using methods from the Royal Society’s funded projects, horticultural trials similar to RHS trials, conservation assessments aligning with IUCN Red List protocols, and seed banking efforts comparable to the Millennium Seed Bank Partnership. Articles often cite herbarium specimens held at institutions like the Cambridge University Herbarium, the Herbarium at Kew, the Herbarium of the Natural History Museum, and international herbaria such as NYBG and MO.
Conservation initiatives mirror collaborations seen between Kew, the IUCN, Botanic Gardens Conservation International and the Millennium Seed Bank, focusing on threatened taxa of succulent flora from regions including the Caatinga, the Succulent Karoo, the Atacama, the Sonoran Desert, the Chihuahuan Desert, the Gran Chaco, the Andes, Madagascar, the Cape Floristic Region, and southwestern Australia. Educational outreach takes formats used by the Eden Project, the Royal Horticultural Society, university outreach programmes at Oxford, Cambridge and Edinburgh, and national science festivals such as the British Science Festival.
The Society provides guidance consistent with international conventions like the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, and works with UK authorities and conservation charities including Natural England, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Plantlife, the Woodland Trust, the RSPB, and local wildlife trusts to promote habitat protection, ex situ conservation and public awareness.
A network of branches from Cornwall to Aberdeenshire runs local meetings and horticultural shows modeled on community events such as the Chelsea Flower Show, the Malvern Autumn Show, the Harrogate Spring Festival, and county fairs. Branches liaise with regional horticultural societies including the Bristol Horticultural Society, the Hampshire Horticultural Society, the Yorkshire Horticultural Society, and with municipal botanical collections like those at the University of Leicester Botanic Garden and the John Innes Centre glasshouses.
National shows attract exhibitors and judges connected to RHS-affiliated panels, international societies such as the Cactus and Succulent Society of America, the Sociedad Colombiana de Cactáceas y Suculentas, and conservation networks like Botanic Gardens Conservation International. Venues have included exhibition centres often used by organisations like the National Trust, the RSPCA, and major university campuses.
Prominent figures associated with the Society have included horticulturists, taxonomists and collectors who also collaborated with Kew, the Natural History Museum, the Royal Horticultural Society, the Linnean Society, the Royal Geographical Society, and academic institutions such as the University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, and University of Edinburgh. Contributors have worked alongside international experts from the Missouri Botanical Garden, the New York Botanical Garden, the Australian National Herbarium, the Instituto de Botánica Darwinion, and national conservation organisations including the IUCN and Botanic Gardens Conservation International.
These members often contributed to literature cited in outlets such as the Kew Bulletin, the Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, Curtis's Botanical Magazine, and regional floras produced by academic presses and botanical institutions.
Category:Botanical societies Category:Horticultural organisations in the United Kingdom