Meet Beth Hoffman | Plant Collections Manager, Franklin Park COndervatory

For this month’s Community Spotlight, we visit Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. Here, plant records are helping guide both the care of historic collections and an ambitious new chapter for the institution. 

As Franklin Park Conservatory prepares for its North Star Master Plan and the renovation of the historic John F. Wolfe Palm House and Dorothy M. Davis Showhouse, Beth Hoffman has been bringing together decades of information from tree surveys, physical maps, invoices, archived plans, and existing IrisBG records.

Her work demonstrates the importance of preserving not only what is known about a plant, but also the context behind missing or uncertain information.

In this Spotlight, Beth reflects on the childhood experiences that sparked her love of plants, the satisfaction of making scattered collection data accessible to others, and the practical value of good documentation during periods of growth and change.
 

What plant, place, or experience first sparked your interest in plants?

Growing up in southern California, I helped my parents in their garden from an early age. I spent many hours outside playing and spending time with plants.  I have especially fond memories of picking tangerines and lemons in my grandmother’s backyard.

How does your work support your garden or institution’s broader mission?

Updated plant records have been vital as we evaluated our current collections ahead of a full renovation of the historic John F. Wolfe Palm House and Dorothy M. Davis Showhouse, built in 1895. This is the first project of our North Star Master Plan, and plant collections are top of mind as we continue forward.

What’s a recent project you’re especially proud of?

Coming into this role, I was excited to find great documentation in IrisBG already. There was also a treasure trove of data in tree surveys, physical maps, invoices, Excel spreadsheets, and planting plans - all spanning decades and living in many different places. It was immensely satisfying to pull it all together and enter it in IrisBG. Now, staff looking for information only need to look in one spot.

Which IrisBG report or feature do you find most useful?

When importing and cross-checking hundreds of trees from four different tree surveys, the data import module was key. I wouldn’t say it made it easy, but it made it doable!

What’s one piece of information you always try to capture in your records—and why?

It’s really documenting an absence of information, but I always try to add detail when something is unknown. It can be hard to tell why a field is blank if you weren’t the one to enter it. For example, when accessioning an existing plant with an unknown source, I add a note if I’ve looked for it already in our invoices and record archives and came up blank. I find it helpful to know why something’s unknown.

🌱 Learn more about the North Star Master Plan, and how Beth's team centralized plant records to support the renovation of the historic John F. Wolfe Palm House and the Dorothy M. Davis Showhouse: July 2026 Coffee Chat Rebuilding a Collection