Why does it matter if plants go extinct?

Plants are really important for all life on Earth. They make up habitats for animals, provide food, and are even used for our medicines.

But 45% of all known flowering plants in the world are potentially threatened with extinction, according to research carried out by scientists at London's Kew Gardens.

A species is described as being extinct when it no longer exists in the wild.

Ricky went to check out some of the plants on display at the Rare and Extinct exhibition at Kew Gardens, many of which are extinct in the wild.

List of threatened species

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is the world's largest global environmental network.

It brings together governments, organisations and experts from around the world in a joint effort to conserve nature and to make the planet more sustainable.

Every year, it produces a red list which looks at how low or high the risk of global extinction is to thousands of animal, fungus, and plant species.

The IUCN places every species into categories of increasing risk:

1. Not Evaluated

2. Data Deficient

3. Least Concern

4. Near Threatened

5. Vulnerable

6. Endangered

7. Critically Endangered

8. Extinct in the Wild

9. Extinct