Russian Scientific Conference with International Participation – Living Plant Collections, Scientific Research, and Education in Botanical Gardens: Traditions and Modernity.

29 June 2026 From June 21 to 26, 2026, an Russian scientific conference with international participation – "Living Plant Collections, Scientific Research, and Education in Botanical Gardens: Traditions and Modernity, in Moscow. I delivered an online presentation on the topic: "Research on Seeds of species genus Iris from the collection of the Botanical Garden Peter the Great, and the Preparation of a Seed Atlas. A comparative analysis of the morphological characteristics of seeds reveals a number of differences between species, while an examination of the microstructure of the outer surface of the seed coat shows that these species exhibit both similarities and quite notable differences. The diagnostic value of any individual trait can be significant for the description of a species. These characteristics can be used in the diagnosis and taxonomy of the genus, as well as to assist specialists in identifying seed samples held under questionable names. Through exchanges with numerous botanical institutions worldwide—as well as within our own country—we have come to realize that some seeds are sent under incorrect names (from Belgium, Germany, France, and Japan, as well as from Russian cities such as Izhevsk, Yoshkar-Ola, Saratov, Syktyvkar, and Ufa); this has a detrimental effect on the work of all botanical institutions.