The UK Plant Science Federation (UKPSF) was launched on the 23 November 2011 and will see its first annual gathering in April 2012. UKPSF is a special‐interest group of the Society of Biology, which aims to bring together the plant science community in the UK and create a coordinated approach to research, industry, funding and education in this vital sector of the biosciences.

We explore the circumstances that led to the foundation of the UKPSF and reflect on its significance in relation to the history of plant science. In particular, we focus on the case of plant genetics as exemplary of the variety of approaches and settings involved in advancing plant science; the importance of maintaining cooperation between different communities; and the work needed to nurture and develop cooperative links, especially within the increasingly complex and fragmented scientific research landscape. As we show, plant genetics also has a history of direct links to plant breeding for crop development. Our perspective is informed by our scientific and historical expertise in this area of research, as well as the involvement of two of the authors in the establishment of the UKPSF itself.