--- description: One in five known plant species is under threat of extinction, according to the first global report into the state of the earth's flora title: One in Five Plant Species Is Endangered, Says Global Report image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte1c7134ad3f20664/69889285524fc02805df7eae/gettyimages-525624962.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Science](/section/science/) ## Science Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Environment](/tag/environment/) ## Environment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # One in Five of the World's Plant Species Is Endangered, Says Report by [Simon Lewis](/author/simon-lewis/) ## Simon Lewis Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 10, 2016 8:57 AM CUT  A picture taken on April 28, 2016 shows broken trees due to the intense deforestation intended for land clearing for palm oil production in Lofa county, northern Liberia A picture taken on April 28, 2016 shows broken trees due to the intense deforestation intended for land clearing for palm oil production in Lofa county, northern LiberiaMarco Longari—AFP/Getty Images by [Simon Lewis](/author/simon-lewis/) ## Simon Lewis Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 10, 2016 8:57 AM CUT One in five of the world’s known plant species is under threat of extinction, according to the first global[ report](http://assets.kew.org/files/State%20of%20the%20Worlds%20Plants%20report%202016%5F0.pdf?%5Fga=1.53149992.1481545917.1462867808 "undefined") on the earth’s flora. Authors of the _State of the World’s Plants_, by London’s Royal Botanical Gardens Kew, recorded 390,000 known plant species and noted that humans have found uses for more than 30,000 of them. Out of the species facing possible extinction, almost one-third (31%) is threatened by the destruction of their habitats to meet expanding demand for agricultural land, including the clearing of many of the world’s forests to make way for palm oil production or cattle farming. Demand for timber is jeopardizing 21% of endangered plant species, while construction is the cause of 13% of at-risk species, the report finds. Researchers of the assessment hope their findings will provide a benchmark to track threats to the flora that sustains human life. Professor Kathy Willis, director of science at Kew, told [the _Guardian_](http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/may/10/one-in-five-of-worlds-plant-species-at-risk-of-extinction "undefined") she was “reasonably optimistic” that the report could help the world to address the threats to plant species. “Plants provide us with everything — food, fuel, medicines, timber and they are incredibly important for our climate regulation. Without plants we would not be here. We are facing some devastating realities if we do not take stock and re-examine our priorities and efforts,” she said. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4324142/endangered-plant-species-kew-gardens/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4324142/endangered-plant-species-kew-gardens/"},"headline":"One in Five of the World's Plant Species Is Endangered, Says Report","datePublished":"2016-05-10T08:57:58.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T17:24:53.424Z","description":"Agricultural expansion and palm oil production are among the biggest threats to plant life","url":"https://time.com/4324142/endangered-plant-species-kew-gardens/","keywords":["Environment","endangered species","london"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte1c7134ad3f20664/69889285524fc02805df7eae/gettyimages-525624962.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Simon Lewis","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/simon-lewis/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte1c7134ad3f20664/69889285524fc02805df7eae/gettyimages-525624962.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"LIBERIA-ENVIRONMENT-PALM-OIL","caption":"LIBERIA-ENVIRONMENT-PALM-OIL","creditText":"Marco Longari—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/environment/","name":"Environment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4324142/endangered-plant-species-kew-gardens/","name":"One in Five of the World's Plant Species Is Endangered, Says Report"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Green Earth","description":"A NOAA satellite gives a rare glimpse into natural and man made changes in global vegetation.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/rEkdsbGi/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2013-06-27T14:41:33.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/rEkdsbGi.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4324142/endangered-plant-species-kew-gardens/","duration":"PT5M15S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4324142/endangered-plant-species-kew-gardens/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```