Herbarium- Concept ,types and Important B.Sc.Part II Sem 3rd Botany

1. Herbarium
Mr.D.L.Gavande
Assistant Professor
Department of Botany
ShriShivajiScienceand ArtsCollege,Chikhli.

2. • A herbarium is a store house of plant specimens.In it dried,
pressed, preserved and mounted plant specimens are
arranged in a sequence of an accepted system of
classification for future reference and study.
• The collected plant specimens from far and wide, mounted
on appropriate sheets and kept in pigeon holes of steel or
wooden cupboards for study at the same place and time.
• According to Fosberg and Sachet (1965) a modern herbarium
is a great filling system for information about plants both
primary in the form of actual specimens and secondary in
the form of published information, pictures and recorded
notes.

3. Functions of Herbarium
• The main and valuable functions of herbarium are:
Conservatory of material and data:
 The herbarium is a storehouse of plant materials with valuable data mentioned on their
labels.
 The material in the herbarium remains as permanent record of flora of those regions even
the natural topography and the vegetation have changed or extinct.
 In these the herbarium provide evidence of what once existed.
 The herbarium specimens bear labels with adequate data on habitat, common name,
native uses, ecological notes like frequency and abundance of species, associated plants,
habit etc.
 These types of data for the particular species, but from different collections of different
regions, when carefully studied and analysed, provides valuable material for almost complete
description of various taxonomic characters such as morphological range of variation,
distribution etc.
 A herbarium receives fresh material by collection of its staff, through gifts, exchanges etc.
• So it is a conservatory of material and data

4. Role in teaching and research:
Herbarium acts as an aid in teaching botany to degree and post-
graduate students.
While teaching a teacher can show herbarium specimens if fresh
material is not available at the time of giving the course.
It is of essential requirement for biosystematic research i.e., for
correct identification and nomenclature besides a source of material.
 It provides research material for anatomical, palynological and
chemotaxonomical studies.
According to Davis (1961) “in the herbarium we can compare all the
related species of a genus in the same place, in the same state and at
the same time”.

5. Kinds of Herbarium
• The kinds of herbaria depend upon the contents, purpose,
region/place, plant groups – present in these:
The herbaria of medicinal plants:
• The herbaria include specimens of plants of known medicinal value or
supposed to have medicinal properties.
Herbaria of weeds:
• The herbaria have weeds of cultivated fields and waste places.
Regional herbaria:
• The herbaria of a particular region or place e.g. Herbarium of Arid
Zone circle, Jodhpur; Herbarium of Central Circle, Allahabad;
Herbarium of a University or Institution.

6. Important Herbarium of The World:
• The first herbarium of world has
founded in 1545 in the University
of Padua, Italy.
• In the world there are about one
thousand five hundred recognised
herbaria, besides many smaller
herbaria with institutions,
universities, pharmacies etc.
• Some important herbaria of the
world and India are listed below
along with their country, year of
founding and approximate number
of sheets.

7. • The main aim of herbaria is to present a picture, by
means of representative specimens, of the
composition of the modern plant world herbaria
must be the chief basis for future monographic,
phytogeographical and ecological studies.
• But they also serve many others beside the plant
taxonomist: the economic botanists, the
ethnobotanists, the morphologists, the geneticist the
palynologist, and students of many other disciplines
must seek much of their basic data in the collections
and publications of systematic botanist.

8. Significance of Herbarium
• A modern herbarium serves a valuable significance in study of plant
taxonomy.
Some significances are:
• 1. It provides valuable data and material.
• 2. Helped in all kinds of taxonomic researches.
• 3. It aids in assessment of conservation status of a taxon.
• 4. It acts as an aid in taxonomical researches.
• 5. It serves as a fundamental resource of identification of almost all
plants of country and even world.

9. • 6. As source of estimation of global biodiversity.
• 7. It is a base line for data on distribution and abundance of keystone
species.
• 8. It helps in distributional range and population biological studies.
• 9. The specimen tag carries all the information about habital, habit,
local name, flower colour, etc., of plant specimen for further botanical,
ethnototanical phytogeographical studies etc.
• 10. It may be useful as source of material for anatomy, palynology
cytotaxonomy biochemistry, pharmacognosy etc. studies.
• 11. Herbarium serves as an aid in teaching plant taxonomy.
• 12. It may provide seeds of extinct plant species for further studies.

10. Royal Botanic Garden, Sibpur, Kolkata (India)
• It was founded by Lt. Col. Robert Kyd in 1787 at Sibpur, and he also acted as
the first Director of this garden.
• The garden represents a large number of the tropical plants of the world.
• Many Fern Houses, Orchid Houses and Palm Houses are the specialities of
the garden.
• It is also the headquarter of the Botanical Survey of India, and some of its
scientific publications are Annals of the Royal Botanic Garden, Kolkata,
Cinchona cultivation in Bengal, and Records of Botanical Survey of India.
• Libraries of the Botanical Survey of India and Royal Botanic Garden are also
well-known to the botanists.
• A big and well reputed herbarium is also associated with the garden.