The Research Area Plants at the Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum Berlin investigates the diversity, evolution, and classification of plants, with a focus on flowering plants (angiosperms). Placing emphasis on integrative taxonomy and systematics, our research combines molecular, morphological, anatomical, chemical, biogeographical, and ecological data to investigate the evolution of plants across time and through space.
We run research programs on selected angiosperm clades, specifically Asterales and Caryophyllales, but also Malpighiales, Buxales, Apiaceae, Cunoniaceae, Nymphaceae and Philodendron (Araceae), investigating evolutionary relationships across multiple taxonomic levels to improve classifications and gain deeper insights into the evolutionary trajectories of these plant groups. They also serve as model systems for developing and refining taxonomic workflows that are firmly rooted in specimens and collections and closely connected to digital infrastructures, such as checklists and curated databases. Here, we closely collaborate with the department of Biological Collections and with the Centre for Biodiversity Informatics and Integration of Collections data (ZBS) of the Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum Berlin.
Research activities are also organized through regionally focused programs in Europe and the Mediterranean, the Caucasus, Latin America, and the Caribbean. These programs integrate work on key plant groups central to the respective floras and support the development, curation, and continuous updating of taxonomic resources, contributing additively to an evolving understanding of regional plant diversity. They also include research on conservation genetics, with broader implications for mitigating biodiversity loss and informing sustainable conservation strategies. Programs in Latin America and the Caribbean also encompass fungi and lichens, as well as algae, specifically diatoms, and are therefore coordinated separately, but in close collaboration with the Research Area Plants.
Through strategic international collaborations, third-party funded projects, and an active research community, we aim to advance botanical knowledge and share data and resources in an Open and FAIR way, benefiting both the scientific community and the broader public.