The Department of Plant Sciences, at the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
, England, was a former Oxford department that researched
plant
Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclud ...
and
fungal
A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from th ...
biology. It was part of the university's
Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division. From 1 August 2022 its functionality merged with the
Department of Zoology to become the
Department of Biology at the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
.
Herbaria
The department housed the Oxford University
Herbaria
A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant specimens and associated data used for scientific study.
The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sheet of paper (called ...
that consists of two herbaria:
*
Fielding-Druce Herbarium.
* Daubeny Herbarium.
In total the collections contain 800,000 specimens and benefits from close links with the university's
Oxford Botanic Garden
The University of Oxford Botanic Garden is the oldest botanic garden in Great Britain and one of the oldest scientific gardens in the world. The garden was founded in 1621 as a physic garden growing plants for medicinal research. Today it cont ...
. The herbaria are now housed under the title of
Department of Biology.
History
Forestry
Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...
was an important part of the university under the name of the ''Imperial Forestry Institute'', from 1924; later the
Commonwealth
A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...
Forestry Institute from 1939. The Oxford Forestry Institute was incorporated into the Department of Plant Sciences in 2002,
and research relating to forestry was undertaken under that name until 2022 when the department merged with the
Department of Zoology to form the
Department of Biology.
Some students were Imperial Forest Service students, who came from many parts of the British Empire to qualify as foresters before they returned home. It ran a post graduate MSc forestry course for many years: ''Forestry and its Relation to Land Use'', until 2002.
[
In January 2021, the ]Oxford City Council
Oxford City Council is the lower-tier local government authority for the city of Oxford in England, providing such services as leisure centres and parking. Social Services, Education and Highways services (amongst others) are provided by Oxfo ...
approved the £200m construction of the ''Life and Mind Building'', which will be the university's largest building project and combine the Departments of Experimental Psychology
Experimental psychology refers to work done by those who apply experimental methods to psychological study and the underlying processes. Experimental psychologists employ human participants and animal subjects to study a great many topics, in ...
and Biology
Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...
. It will replace the Tinbergen Building on South Parks Road
South Parks Road is a road in Oxford, England. It runs east–west past the main Science Area of the University of Oxford. Many of the university science departments are located nearby or face the road, including parts of the geography, zoo ...
, which was closed and demolished when asbestos
Asbestos () is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere b ...
was discovered in 2017. The building will feature multiple laboratories, teaching and testing spaces providing research facilities for 800 students and 1200 researchers. Work is expected to start in June 2021, with the building opening in September 2024.
See also
* Department of Biology, University of Oxford
The Department of Biology, established in 2022, is a science department in the University of Oxford's Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division, University of Oxford, Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division. It was formed on 1 Au ...
* University of Oxford Botanic Garden
The University of Oxford Botanic Garden is the oldest botanic garden in Great Britain and one of the oldest scientific gardens in the world. The garden was founded in 1621 as a physic garden growing plants for medicinal research. Today it conta ...
References
{{Coord , 51.7590, -1.2524, type:edu_region:GB, display=title
Biology education in the United Kingdom
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
Plant Sciences
Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...
Educational institutions with year of establishment missing