Scientists: Plant knowledge could be lost

American scientists say the plant world could become a virtual mystery in the coming decades as students increasingly shy away from studying botany.

Since 1988, the number of research unis in the US offering botany degrees has dropped by half, according to the National Science Foundation.

The National Center for Education Statistics says fewer than 400 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral botany degrees were awarded in 2012. Educators say that's because students are being pushed into more modern, technology-related majors.

Botanists fear this will lead to a shortage of people able to teach about, identify and use plants, which could harm conservation efforts and even the ability to develop alternate fuels and important medicines.

At the same time, universities and states facing budget cuts are closing herbaria, or collections of plant species that botanists can reference or use for genetic material.

"We aren't going to understand what we have in the world. By some estimates, only 20 per cent of the (plant and animal) species in the world have been identified," said Joe Miller, from the National Science Foundation's Division of Environmental Biology.