In this post, Jifan Luo, a Master's student from the Landscape Architecture from Zhejiang A&F University, discusses and shares his published paper in Journal of Plant Ecology in 2024, “An ecological perspective on Joseph Rock’s (1884–1962) plant collection activities in China”.

Why should we study Joseph Rock's activities of plant collection in China?

In the early 20th century, numerous western botanists, often referred to as "plant hunters", embarked on ambitious expeditions to China, playing a crucial role in the study of botany and botanical diversity. Despite their contributions, comprehensive assessments of their explorations are lacking. To bridge this gap, this article focuses on the work of Joseph Charles Francis Rock, a notable figure in that era. Our work revisits Rock’s botanical expeditions within the broader context of botanical diversity conservation. In addition, this study can also provide valuable historical data and new insights for contemporary plant diversity conservation, and offer support for discussing the importance of plant diversity conservation to environmental sustainability.

What are the findings of this study?

It outlines his historical experiences in collecting plants in China and enumerates the species composition and phenotypic traits of the plants he collected. Additionally, it also analyzes the spatial distribution of the species, the completeness of his collection and the α- and β-diversity of the plants he collected. Our findings reveal that Rock led four major botanical expeditions in China between 1922 and 1933, amassing a total of 28 184 sheets and 16 608 numbers across 204 families, 1081 genera and 4231 species. His focus was predominantly on ornamental species, which exhibit a variety of flower colors and inflorescences. His collection work spanned 5 provinces, 35 cities and 72 counties, with a notable concentration in the Hengduan Mountains, a current biodiversity hotspot.

Some views on ecological research

First and foremost, ecological research is inseparable from in-depth field exploration, which serves as the fundamental approach to obtaining authentic and vivid research materials. More importantly, the ultimate value of ecological research lies in revealing the interaction patterns between organisms and the environment, thereby providing scientific support for safeguarding biodiversity and achieving harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. Rock’s plant collection journey has added valuable materials to global botanical research. It is precisely this “going out”spirit of exploration that enabled him to discover numerous plant species previously unrecorded and capture vivid details of the interactions between plants and their environment.

About the author

Luo Jifan, holds a Master’s degree in Landscape Architecture from Zhejiang A&F University. She studied under Mr. Wu Renwu, focusing on the history of plant dissemination and specimen collection in China and the West during her graduate studies. She was awarded the National Scholarship (2024) and recognized as an “Outstanding Graduate Student Leader” (2024) by the College of Landscape Architecture and Architecture at Zhejiang A&F University.