Office of Seed and Plant Introduction

The Section of Seed and Plant Introduction was the first official branch of the United States Department of Agriculture responsible for collecting and introducing new plant species and varieties to the United States. It was established in 1898, under the direction of David Fairchild and employed agricultural explorers to seek out economically useful plants to introduce to the United States from all over the world. It has introduced over 200,000 species and varieties of non-native plants to the United States including some of the most well-known and economically significant crops. The activities of the Section of Seed and Plant Introduction and its early successors were largely responsible for the industrialization of agriculture in the United States. Since the establishment of the Section of Seed and Plant Introduction there has continuously been an office within the USDA with plant exploration and collection responsibility, though its name has changed periodically. Today, the mission area within USDA responsible for collecting, conserving, documenting, and distributing plant material is called the National Plant Germplasm System.