Botanical gardens have a long history of showcasing plant species that are unusual for their new location. Their focus on “exotic plants” is a central attraction, which are given specific conditions to thrive outside their native environment (Schneckenburger, 2010). But the label “exotic” is not neutral. It reflects a colonial mindset that frames non-European plants as strange, desirable, and subordinate and so, objects to be collected and displayed (Nielsen, 2023). This language reduces rich ecological and cultural contexts to spectacle, reinforcing ideas of dominance and control.
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