Descanso’s Plant Records ‘Go Global’

Alice Kitajima maps plants in the landscape

Plant specialists are easy to find in the landscape, sporting a bright yellow backpack with an antenna andsatellite receiver protruding approximately 12 inches from the top of the pack, and entering data into a yellow, hand-held computer. They are bringing Descanso’s plant record keeping into the 21st century with global positioning technology.

Thanks to a generous grant from the J.W. and Ida M. Jameson Foundation, Descanso’s Plant Records Department was able to purchase a Trimble Pathfinder Pro XR, a powerful GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver unit. A GPS receiver determines its precise location by using a triangulation method to establish the distance from a group of 24 earth-orbiting satellites. At Descanso we use this technology to map specimens in the plant collections and to survey many other important features such as pathways, edifices, irrigation lines and planting beds. The department began this mapping project in May 2000. With the addition of the GPS receiver unit, we now are able to map and label accessioned plants in a more effective and efficient manner.

Maintaining a comprehensive, up-to-date plant inventory is important to ensure proper management of each specimen in our collections. This effort is greatly enhanced by mapping the exact location of the plants. Comprehensive plant records are entered into BG-Base, a database program specifically designed for botanical gardens and arboreta. The program is linked to a computerized mapping system,

BG-MAP, which generates digital maps of the information captured with the GPS receiver unit.
The process of collecting plant location data is a straight-forward procedure. As the GPS receiver unit gathers satellite signals, field observation information (such as plant condition, reproductive status, measurements and accession label status) will be entered into the touch-screen hand-held computer. After the surveying session, the data collector will transfer the records into a PC which then will be interpreted by the BG-Base and BG-MAP programs.
The main goal for the Plant Records Department is to map every single specimen in Descanso Gardens’ plant collections. This will be no small task. After the foundation has been set, field checks will be conducted annually to ensure proper maintenance and care of the plants.
As the world and Descanso become more connected with the internet and computer utilization, the Gardens hopes to make the computerized plant records and maps accessible to a wider audience, and to provide an opportunity for visitors to search for specific plants in Descanso’s extraordinary collections.