Abstract: In the recent 500 years, plant introduction or domestication and internationalization of introduced plant crops have profoundly changed the world agricultural productions and have had far-reaching impacts on the history of human civilization. Whether in Western colonial history or in the Ming and Qing dynasties of China, successful introduction and domestication of important crop plants have immeasurably changed economic and social developments and history. Plant living collections are the core of botanical gardens and the “soul” by inheriting the contexts and achievements of scientific research of modern botanical gardens in the past five centuries. Plant living collections are also a foundation of botanical garden-based life science and biotechnology and supporting facilities for other disciplines and are of fundamental importance for current and future developments of botanical gardens. Living collections of plant-based research in botanical gardens are multi-disciplinary, of critical importance for contemporary basic biology and also closely connected to economic and social prosperity and our daily life.