1. Scope
GardenSpecies provides general botanical and horticultural reference information. The site is designed for learning, plant discovery, and practical gardening context. It is not a substitute for site-specific professional advice, laboratory identification, emergency guidance, veterinary advice, medical advice, agricultural extension consultation, or instructions from a competent local authority.
2. Horticultural guidance varies
Plant performance and care can vary materially by species, cultivar, provenance, climate, microclimate, season, soil, container, irrigation method, indoor environment, pests, disease pressure, plant age, and local growing practices. A light, water, temperature, soil, hardiness, pruning, propagation, or planting recommendation should be treated as context rather than a universal guarantee.
Where a page describes a range or commonly reported practice, conditions at your location may differ. Use local extension services, botanical gardens, nursery professionals, or other qualified regional sources when local conditions matter.
3. Toxicity, edibility, allergies, and physical hazards
Do not rely on GardenSpecies alone to decide whether a plant is safe to eat, safe for children or pets, non-allergenic, or free of thorns, sap irritation, poisonous parts, or other hazards. Common names can refer to multiple species, toxicity can differ by plant part and exposure, and some plants can be dangerous when misidentified.
Before ingestion, treatment of an exposure, or use around vulnerable people or animals, confirm the exact plant identity and consult an appropriate authoritative source or professional. In an urgent exposure situation, contact the relevant poison-control, medical, or veterinary service for your location.
4. Invasive, noxious, protected, and regulated plants
Plant legality and invasive or noxious-weed status can vary by country, state, province, municipality, ecosystem, and date. A species that is permitted in one place may be restricted, prohibited, quarantined, or subject to disposal or transport rules elsewhere.
Always verify current local laws and official invasive-species or agriculture guidance before buying, propagating, importing, moving, or planting a regulated species. GardenSpecies may summarize authoritative information, but local authorities remain the controlling source for legal requirements.
5. Sources, taxonomy, and uncertainty
GardenSpecies aims to use reputable botanical, academic, government, and horticultural sources and to preserve provenance where supported. Taxonomy, accepted names, hardiness guidance, regulatory status, and other fields can change as authorities update their records.
Conflicting or incomplete information may be flagged, withheld, or revised rather than guessed. Even carefully sourced material can contain errors or become outdated. Corrections and stronger primary sources can be submitted through the contact page.
6. Site content and permitted use
Unless a page states otherwise, GardenSpecies site text, design, and original presentation are provided for personal informational use. Third-party facts, quotations, datasets, images, and other materials remain subject to their own rights, licenses, and source terms. Do not assume that an image or external source linked from the site is freely reusable.
Automated access must not disrupt the service, bypass security controls, misrepresent provenance, or republish GardenSpecies content in a way that falsely suggests endorsement or source authority.
7. Availability and changes to the service
GardenSpecies may add, revise, correct, move, or remove content and features as the reference develops. We do not guarantee uninterrupted availability, complete coverage of every species, or that every field will be populated when reliable evidence is unavailable.
8. Changes and contact
These terms may be updated when the product, data model, legal requirements, or service features materially change. Questions, corrections, and concerns can be sent through the GardenSpecies contact form.