Asparagus filicinus

The threats to this species remain unknown. However, there are several known threats to the forests of China, particularly illegal logging and legal deforestation due to increasing population pressures and urbanization. Air and water pollution are also having a detrimental effect on China's forests (USDA Forest Service 2013). It is unknown whether these threats are having a direct effect on Asparagus filicinus.

The genus Asparagus is listed in Annex I of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) which aims to guarantee sustainable agriculture and food security through the conservation and sustainable use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture, as well as to ensure the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of their use (FAO 2009).

No accessions for this species were found in the EURISCO Catalogue (2014), the National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS) in the USA (USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program 2014) or the Svalbard Global Seed Vault (SGSV Data Portal 2013). Collection of germplasm from wild populations for ex situ conservation is a priority for this species. 

This species is present in two protected areas in China (Information Center for the Environment (ICE) 2013), the Maolan Nature Reserve and the Xishuangbanna Nature Reserve. This species is also found in protected groves in the Indian Himalayas (Gokhale and Negi 2011) and the Doi Sutep-Pui National Park in Northern Thailand (Maxwell and Elliot 2001). As a result, it is subject to passive in situ conservation. Surveys to confirm the presence of this species in these protected areas, to determine population trends and to assess the need for active in situ management of the species would be beneficial.