Mt. Cuba Center is home to more than 1,000 species of native plants, many of which are threatened by extinction. Mt. Cuba Center’s native plant collection was established by our founders, the Copelands, who were pioneers in conservation, beginning over 50 years ago.

Many of our plants are grown from seeds collected in the wild, propagated in our greenhouse, and cultivated and displayed in our gardens. We hold these plants in trust for the future but also strive to conserve plants in our natural lands and beyond our borders.

Mt. Cuba Center’s greenhouse is involved in rigorous studies to determine how to propagate difficult or underutilized plants so they can be re-established in the natural landscape.

From the Delaware Dune Restoration Project with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to our seed exchange programs with the Natural Lands Trust, we continue to be a champion for native plants and a model for other botanic gardens.