The Huntington Botanical Gardens has a plant theft problem. It’s a global issue.
The Huntington Botanical Gardens in San Marino has a problem with plant thieves.
Whole succulent plants have been swiped in brazen heists. Smaller pieces of plants have been pilfered for propagation.
“It’s heart-wrenching,” said John Trager, curator of the Desert Collections at the Huntington Botanical Gardens. “We’re interested in preserving the plants and habitats so that they can continue to be studied.”
Recently, an echeveria succulent was taken from the Desert Garden, a hot spot for thieves at The Huntington.
“It is a problem,” said Nicole Cavender, director of botanical gardens. “We’ve had it way too many times than we should, but what we want to do is draw attention to this illegal trade that’s really criminal activity.”
A global black market
A map from The Huntingon shows illegal trade maps for endangered cacti taken from the wild in South America. The Huntington notes: “Traffickers sometimes ship plants through intermediate countries to hide the plants’ origins.”
Courtesy The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens.
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Cavender said it’s not just within the walls of The Huntington that this is an issue, there’s a global…
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