USDA PLANTS Database?

[gcwarbler]

Has anyone noticed that the USDA’s PLANTS database is non-functional at present?
The standard starting point for my searches has typically been from:
https://plants.usda.gov/
but that now gives a “404 - File or directory not found” error. A Google search suggests a revised URL:
https://plants.sc.egov.usda.gov
but I get a blank blue screen and nothing else loads.

Where did the USDA put this database?

[zdanko]

I get a “403 - Forbidden: Access is denied” error for the first link. The second link loads just fine for me; maybe you need to clear your browser cache?

[sedgequeen]

Here’s the URL of the new version of USDA PLANTS: https://plants.sc.egov.usda.gov/home

This is the a major part of a long-awaited upgrade.

[gcwarbler]

Thanks all; that 2nd link is now functional (with the directory addition of “/home”).

[jdmore]

Just an update FYI: currently both URLs go to the same place, don’t know if that will continue or not.

I’ve been in touch with them about the web search functionality that used to be available like this:
https://plants.usda.gov/java/nameSearch?mode=sciname&keywordquery=Cryptantha%20humilis

and which was used in the taxon links on the About tab of the Taxon Pages for every U.S. plant. They are actively working on that issue, and for now I’ve temporarily reset that link to go to the main PLANTS search page. If and when they restore the name search functionality, I’ll update that taxon link.