One team of 4 Diploma, BSc, MSc or PhD students (with one reserve) can enter the competition from each institution. Where there is a lot of interest (and why wouldn’t there be?!) why not hold an internal contest to select team members and the reserve?

The first rounds will be on-line and consist of multiple choice questions on topics including plant ID, ecology, conservation, plant pathology, biochemistry, molecular genetics, plant uses and also plants and botanists in history and culture.

The first two rounds will be on 11, and 18 February 2026, streaming on YouTube. The quarterfinal will be on-line on 25 February and the 4 teams with the highest scores will be asked to take part in the live semi-final and final on 19 August at the University of Reading.

Day 1

After the first knock-out round of 50 multiple-choice questions on 11 February, the 8 teams with the lowest scores left the competition. They were from the Universities of Dundee, Durham, Essex, Liverpool, Nottingham, Oxford Brookes, Royal Holloway and Sheffield. Our commiserations! Dr Martin Barker , Senior Lecturer in the School of Biological Sciences at University of Aberdeen asked the questions. He and John Warren provided a commentary on the teams’ answers.

A recording of Day 1 is available on YouTube.

Day 2

Another 7 teams left the competition after the second day of 50 questions, asked by Professor Yoselin Benitez-Alfonso, Professor of Plant Sciences and UKRI Future Leaders Fellow at the University of Leeds. These were the teams from universities of Oxford, Reading, Aberystwyth, Bristol, Harper Adams, Queen’s Belfast, University College Dublin, Southampton and Portsmouth. Sad to see them go!

A recording of Day 2 is available on YouTube.

The remaining 15 teams will compete again on 25 February for the four teams with the highest scores to go through to the Semifinals in August.

Day 3

There were only 15 teams left in the competition, with Dr Karen Bacon Lecturer in Botany and Plant Sciences at the University of Galway will ask the teams questions. After the last round, the teams from universities of Aberdeen, Cambridge and Edinburgh were ahead of all the others, but there were five teams contesting for the final place in the semifinals. These were from the universities of Anglia Ruskin, Bangor, York and University College London as well as from Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. The result of a round of 5 tiebreaker questions was that they all had the same score, so there was another set of tiebreaker questions. This time the team from Anglia Ruskin University got all 5 of them correct, ahead of the other teams, so will be in the Semifinals on 19 August.

Play along sheets for the February knock out rounds and the Quarterfinals

Fourth Student Botany Festival

The fourth Student Botany Festival, 20–21 August 2025, will be a vibrant two‑day gathering of BUC students and professional plant enthusiasts. All students who have taken part in BUC2026 will be invited. This year’s festival coincides with the Centenary Celebrations of the University of Reading Charter, and will be marked by an exhibition showcasing a century of botanical achievement at Reading and celebrating the future. 

Day one festival highlights include student flash talks, guided tours of the Walled Garden and Harris Garden, and a campus nature walk. Networking opportunities will abound with a plant swap during lunch, while the afternoon features expert discussions, creative activities, and interviews for the “BUC‑umentary” (a documentary charting the history, achievements, and impact of BUC). The evening brings a buffet dinner and a social programme with student‑led plant games, a sci‑art showcase, and a screening of the Margaret Mee Moon Flower documentary.

Day two shifts focus to careers and skills. A panel discussion will explore opportunities in academia, consultancy, industry, and plant health, followed by one‑to‑one conversations with careers personnel and industry stalls. Interactive workshops will cover herbarium practice, forensic botany, science communication, and more. The festival closes with keynote speaker Dr Jamie Thompson sharing his career journey with plants, ensuring inspiration for the next generation of botanists.