Save a species
There are an estimated 400,000 plant species on Earth - as many as a quarter are threatened with extinction. You can help Kew protect threatened plants by saving a species outright today.
The Millennium Seed Bank Partnership works with partner countries to collect seed from plants and habitats at risk from climate change and the ever-increasing impact of human activities.
We also save the seed of plants faced with the threat of extinction and those of most use in the future. The seeds are banked at Kew's Millennium Seed Bank and in partner seed banks around the world. By 2020, our aim is to secure the safe storage of seed from 25% of the world’s wild plant species.
The average amount it costs to ensure a species of plant will never become extinct is £2,000.
To recognise your extraordinary contribution, we will send you a certificate and a photograph of the plant species that you are responsible for safeguarding. You'll also receive an invitation to go behind the scenes on a tour of Kew's Millennium Seed Bank at Wakehurst, West Sussex.
To save a species outright today, choose from the options below, or contact us on 0208 332 3248 (Monday to Friday, 9am - 5pm)
Acampe orchid
Found growing on trees and rocks of dry tropical forests on the island of Madagascar, the orchid Acampe pachyglossa has evolved thick leathery leaves and the same metabolism as cacti to cope with the dry conditions. They are found in almost every habitat on the island, from the coast to the highest mountain summit, and from the rain forest to the spiny forest.
Nymphaea thermarum
Now extinct in the wild, this is the world’s smallest waterlily, with pads as little as 1cm wide. In 2008 it disappeared from the one location it used to grow wild, a patch of thermal spring just a few square metres in size in Mashyuza, Rwanda. We’re protecting its seeds in the MSB, plus today Kew is the only place in the world where it is propagated regularly and in large quantities