Back

Using AI to create a knowledge bank of plants that benefit the environment 

The RHS will use AI (artificial intelligence) to help build a knowledge bank of cultivated plants for specific uses, such as pollination, pollution capture and water management, as it launches a new five-year programme of work to commence in 2025

Plants for Purpose will see the RHS work in collaboration with the University of Nottingham to develop a deep learning tool that will identify characteristics among the more than 400,000 different plant cultivars found in the UK that RHS and wider industry research has shown to be beneficial. (Deep learning is a method in AI that teaches computers to process data in a way that is inspired by the human brain.)

For example, RHS research has previously revealed that rough surfaced leaves are most adept at capturing particulate pollution. Machine learning techniques that reliably quantify texture can be used to identify specimens from the RHS Herbarium – a vast collection of dried plant specimens – with hairs and scales. These plants’ trait matches will be cross checked by botanists and horticultural scientists and definitive guides will be published over the course of the next five years. 

The knowledge bank will also include plants for biodiversity, health and wellbeing, thermal regulation, and carbon capture, helping to grow the pool of plants used by gardeners and mitigating the effects of the biodiversity crisis, climate change and urbanisation. 

What we plant today needs to benefit us tomorrow so coupling RHS science with the University of Nottingham’s technology to identify the winning traits of 400,000 potential garden plants could see a revolution in what we find in gardens, new developments, and town and city landscaping

Alistair Griffiths, RHS Director of Science
Dr Michael Pound, Associate Professor, School of Computer Science, University of Nottingham, said: “It’s tremendously exciting to be part of a project that will deliver real impact for UK biodiversity. Deep learning excels when we have lots of data, and this is exactly what the RHS Herbarium offers. The trained networks will study hundreds of thousands of images to draw out the key features that distinguish plants. These can then be embedded into tools that allow RHS scientists to identify potentially important varieties in seconds rather than months.” 

AI to feature at RHS Chelsea 2025

The RHS has also announced that the first Show Garden to be managed using AI at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025 is already experimenting with the technology via its ChatBotanist tool available to members and RHS Grow app users, with the intention of freeing up advisors to conduct research that will inform planting choices and management techniques in UK gardens. 

The Avanade ‘Intelligent’ Garden, designed by Tom Massey and Je Ahn will feature at RHS Chelsea 2025

​
Save to My scrapbook

Monty Don designs Dog Garden for RHS Chelsea Flower Show

Monty Don designs Dog Garden for RHS Chelsea Flower Show

Gardens bring a green revolution to RHS Chelsea

Gardens bring a green revolution to RHS Chelsea

Get involved

The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.