Post by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Did you know one plant can have dozens of different names? 🌿 Many names are ambiguous and used for multiple plants. As bluebells bloom across the UK this April, it’s a perfect reminder that plant names really matter - not just for identification, but for conservation and global health. In the world of medicinal plants, a single name like ‘ginseng’ can refer to many different remedies made from different species, each with distinct chemistry, uses and conservation status. This confusion has consequences for research, regulation and even allow threatened species to slip through trade controls. At Kew, we’re working to fix this. Our Medicinal Plant Names Services links alternative names to an authoritative taxonomy plant names to verified specimens, helping scientists, regulators and conservationists to find data reliably and speak the same language 🌍 Find out more 👇 MPNS: https://ow.ly/ufMM50Yobxo Plants for Health: https://ow.ly/3kM050Yobxn #WWD2026 #MedicinalAromaticPlants

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