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The National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS) is a cooperative effort by public and private organizations to preserve plant genetic diversity. Federal and State personnel at 20 sites are responsible for 547,000 unique accessions of a wide array of plant genetic resources representing 14,325 species and 2,355 genera. Included are the National Center for Genetic Resource Preservation, which conducts preservation research and provides back-up for all collections; 18 active sites responsible for seed- and clonally-propagated species; and the National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, responsible for the Germplasm Resource Information Network, a system for collection and dissemination of germplasm information. Examples of integrated plant-associated microbial research with genebank collections will be presented. Collections of plant-associated microbes are very important; no collection is prepared to accept and maintain the variety of material being isolated and characterized by researchers. The NPGS, in partnership with the Global Crop Diversity Trust and Bioversity International, developed the GRIN-Global System to provide a database flexible, multi-lingual, license-free information management system to meet global plant genebank needs. Released internationally in 2011, NPGS staff members are working to implement GRIN-Global. This system should be assessed for its potential value for managing information associated with other biological collections, including microbes.<p><p>Keywords: