This document discusses herbariums, which are collections of preserved plant specimens. It outlines the aims of herbariums as preserving plants, contributing to scientific studies, and informing the public. There are three main types: national, regional, and local. The techniques for creating herbarium specimens involve collecting, pressing, drying, poisoning, mounting, labeling, and storing plants. Major steps are collection, pressing, drying, mounting, labeling, and storage in cabinets following a classification system. Herbariums play an important role in research, education, and conservation by preserving specimens and geographical distributions. Several important herbariums in India are highlighted.

1. Presented by….
Patel Hasti G.
M.Sc. botany Sem II
CBO 404
Department of life
sciences,
H.N.G.U. Patan

2. Content
 What is Herbarium ?
 Aim of Herbarium
 Types of Herbarium
 Technique of Herbarium
 Role of Herbarium
 Some important herbarium in India

3. .
What is Herbarium ?
• A collection of preserved
plant specimens in closed
field.
• These specimens may be
whole plants or plant parts
and these will be usually
be in a dried form ,
mounted on a sheet.

4.  It is based on a scientific collection, in
continuous expansion of plant specimens
which are carefully dried, labelled and
conveniently treated for its permanent
preservation.
 Its research work focuses on the collection of
plant specimens which are catalogued and
systematic botanical classification

5. Aim of Herbarium
To study on various plants
To contribute to scientific studies
To preserve the catalogues of seeds and dried
herbarium plants
To maintain plants on the edge of extinctions
To inform the students and public about these
plants
To inform them the effect of global warming on
ecological system

6. Types of Herbarium
 Davis and Heywood have classified the
herbaria into three category:
A] National or Major Herbaria
B] Regional Herbaria
C] Local Herbaria

7. Techniques of Herbarium
It involves following step and guideline
which help in creating conventional useful
and long lasting herbarium specimens:
1] Collection 5] Mounting
2] Pressing 6] Stitching
3] Drying 7] labelling
4] poisoning 8] storage

8. 1] Collection :
 Plant specimen should bear flowers and fruits , if
present.
 Herbaceous small plant specimen should be
collected with roots or other underground parts.
 A twig of about 25 cm with leaves & flowers , will
form an ideal material.
 Note sheet’s no. & data recorded in the field
notebook.
 Soon after the specimens are collected, they should
be pressed in the field itself.

9. Collection material

10. 2] Pressing
 Specimens should be carefully placed in the center
on the pressing sheets.
 If specimens are large enough , they should be bend
giving them shape of V, N or W .
 the bundles should be uniform in thickness in the
middle and on the sides.
 Specimens should be kept one above the other.

12. 3] Drying:
 After two or three changes the specimens are finally
kept in fresh blotting sheets and dried either by
natural or artificial heating.
4] Poisoning:
 use of mercuric chloride
 Lauryl pentachorophenate (LPCP) as substitute of
mercuric chloride

13. 5] Mounting and Stitching
 The standard size of a herbarium sheet is 29 x 42
cm.
 Usually made of durable card sheets
 It is advisable to mount one specimen on each
herbarium sheet.
 Dissected and loose parts such as flowers , fruits
&seeds are kept in paper packets & pasted to the
mounted sheet.

14. 6] Labelling :
 The labels are put on the right hand side, at the bottom
of the herbarium sheets they are of 3” x 5” size and
should have the following information :
a) Name of organization with which specimen plant
originated
b) Name of the family
c) Botanical name of the plant
d) Local name
e) Locality of collection
f) Date of collection
g) Habitat of the plant
h) Field notes & collection no.
i) Name of collector

15. 7] Storage :
 Plant specimens, which have been properly mounted &
identified , are filled systematically in special wooden/
steel cabinets.
 The herbarium sheets loaded with specimens are filed
inside folders which are of various color schemes
indicating species, genus, family , geographical area, etc
 Plants are arranged & stored following bentham &
Hooker’s/ Engler & prantl’ system of classification.

17. 8] Fumigation:
 This is done for killing insects which often damage
plant.
 The most common method is to keep Naphthalene balls
within muslin bags in each pigeon hole.
 Some time paradichlorobenzene is used.
 Small cloth bags with PDB are placed in the pigeon
holes.
 The chemical also be sprinkled on sheets or bundles.

18. Role of Herbarium
 To act as a repository of dried plant specimens,
safeguard them against loss & destruction by fungi,
insects, etc. & make them available for study.
 Several herbaria of repute, keep Type Specimens – the
principal proof of the existence of a species, in safe
custody, often in rooms with restricted access.
 As original documents upon which knowledge of
taxonomic characters rests, herbarium specimens
greatly help in developing floras, manuals and
monograph.

19.  Those engaged in taxonomic studies, can personally
identify their engaged collection by comparison with
already identified herbarium specimens.
 Voucher specimens preserved in various herbaria
provide an index of specimens on which studies on
chromosomes, phytochemistry, ultrastructure micro
morphology, etc. have been undertaken.
 Most herbaria have specimens collected from different
parts of the world & thus their scrutiny can provide
information on the geographical distribution of taxa.
Cont…

20. Important Herbarium of India
Herbarium Place No of
sheets
(Approx.)
Year of
founding
Central National Herbarium Kolkata 1,500,000 1795
Forest Research Institute, Herbarium Dehra Dun 340,000 1906
Botanical Survey of India, southern circle Coimbatore 200,000 1874
St. Xavier’s College, Blatter herbarium Mumbai 200,000 1906-1907
Botanical Survey of India, Eastern circle Shillong 225,000 1956
Botanical Survey of India, Western circle Pune 125,000 1956
Botanical Survey of India, Northern circle Dehra Dun 60,000 1956
Botanical Survey of India, Industrial circle Kolkata 50,000 1887
Botanical Survey of India, Central circle Allahabad 40,000 1955
National Botanical Garden, Herbarium Lucknow 1,00,000 1948

21.  References
A Text Book of Botany : Angiosperms
By B. P. Pandey
www.slideshare.com
www.herbarium imeges.com