We are very pleased to share the news with you that from December 14th 2022, our products and services are now being supplied by Species360, Minneapolis, MN, USA (www.Species360.org). Though we are now a part of Species360, our team members have remained the same and will continue to service the community as before. We are currently in a period of transition, during which our website and other online resources will updated. For more details about the new changes, please visit https://www.hortis.com/blog/the-hortis-team-joins-species360
Our History
Our mission is to provide market leading tools to further the impact and prosperity of plant collection holders.
We believe technology should be reliable, feel effortless and provide new opportunities, and above all make it easier for botanical collection holders to reach their goals in the important work they do. The concerns and needs of the community are the driving force and inspiration for all the work we do.
Botanical Software Ltd. was established in 2007 as one of three companies working on the IrisBG Software Package. In addition to being involved in the development of the software with the focus on mobile solutions, Botanical Software also had the sole responsibility for marketing the product and building up the community. Starting with 6 institutions in 2007, we grew to a thriving community of 170 institutions on four continents by the end of 2019.
To be in a better position to deal with the challenges ahead, it was decided in December 2019 to discontinue the IrisBG collaboration between Botanical Software Ltd, Compositae AS and Digital Forvaltning AS. As a consequence, all the products and services of Botanical Software formerly promoted under the name “IrisBG” were rebranded with the new name “Floria”. For more details about the changes, please read https://botanicalsoftware.com/2019/12/collaborate-innovate-and-adapt/
In June 2021, at the American Public Garden Association annual conference, Botanical Software launched the Next Generation Plant Record system Hortis. Hortis is a plant collection platform which extends beyond the traditional definition of a plant records system. Our aim to redefine the role and usefulness of plant records in botanic gardens through innovation.
From December 24th 2022, the team members at Botanical Software have moved over to Species360 and all our products and services are supplied by Species360, Minneapolis, MN, USA (www.Species360.org).

United Kingdom
Botanical Software Ltd
40 Queen Square
Bristol
BS1 4QP
United Kingdom
☎ +44 1761 479350
UK: 6357322
The Netherlands
Botanical Software B.V.
Koepoortstraat 40
6981 AT Doesburg
Netherlands
☎ +31 683 644540
KvK No: 74864882
Contact us
Call us directly using the telephone numbers provided, or send us an enquiry.
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Meet the Team

Havard Ostgaard
Havard is the CEO of Botanical Software, with a degree in Computer Science from the University of Oslo and University of York (UK). In addition to being a keen gardener, he has more than 30 years experience working with software design and development and, for about half of that time, has focused on trying to make life easier for botanic gardens around the world. Fluent in English and Norwegian, he is now working on improving his Dutch.
havard@botanicalsoftware.com | orcid.org/0000-0003-3486-5654

Dr Waheed Arshad
Our Botanical Scientist Waheed completed his PhD at Royal Holloway University of London, in collaboration with the Millennium Seed Bank Partnership at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. As well as a BSc (Hons) in Biology and an MSc in Plant Diversity and Evolution, Waheed has 10+ years of experience working in research with botanic gardens across the UK and Central Europe. He is also a Fellow of the Linnean Society of London.
waheed@botanicalsoftware.com | orcid.org/0000-0002-9413-2279

Dave Twomey
Our Product Designer Dave has a Master of Arts degree from University of Bristol and 6+ years of experience working on graphic, digital and UX software design.

Miles Crighton
Our Software Engineer Miles acquired a BEng in Electronic Engineering from the University of Reading. He more recently found a love for web development. Alongside building apps & software that aim to delight, Miles enjoys getting his hands dirty in the garden; digging out flower beds and planting veggies.

Myrna Ostgaard
Myrna edits English, translates and does administrative work. She has a degree in English Language and Literature from the University of Utrecht.
Engaging with the botanical community since 2007





























