UC Berkeley Herbarium

UC Berkeley Herbarium is a renowned research institution and repository of plant specimens, located at the University of California, Berkeley, and is closely affiliated with the University and Jepson Herbaria. The herbarium was founded in 1895 by Melville Kelsey, and has since become one of the largest and most comprehensive herbaria in the world, with significant contributions from notable botanists such as Asa Gray, John Torrey, and William Henry Brewer. The herbarium's collections have been shaped by the work of many prominent botanists, including George Bentham, Joseph Dalton Hooker, and Luther Burbank, who have all made significant contributions to the field of botany at institutions like the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the New York Botanical Garden.

● History

The history of the herbarium is closely tied to the development of the University of California, Berkeley and the Department of Botany, with early collections made by Eugene W. Hilgard and William Albert Setchell. The herbarium's early growth was also influenced by the work of Harvard University's Asa Gray, who was a prominent figure in the development of American botany and had close ties to the California Academy of Sciences and the United States Geological Survey. The herbarium's collections have been further enriched by the contributions of many other institutions, including the Missouri Botanical Garden, the Field Museum of Natural History, and the Natural History Museum, London, which have all collaborated on projects like the Flora of North America and the International Plant Names Index.

● Collections

The herbarium's collections comprise over 2.2 million plant specimens, including significant holdings of angiophyta, gymnospermae, and pteridophyta, with a particular focus on the flora of California and the flora of the western United States. The collections also include significant holdings of plant specimens from other regions, including Asia, Africa, and South America, with contributions from institutions like the Kunming Institute of Botany, the South African National Biodiversity Institute, and the Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro. The herbarium's collections are closely tied to those of other institutions, such as the New York Botanical Garden, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, which have all collaborated on projects like the World Flora Online and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

● Research

Research at the herbarium is focused on the systematics and evolution of plants, with a particular emphasis on the flora of California and the flora of the western United States. The herbarium's researchers have made significant contributions to the field of plant systematics, including the work of Bruce G. Baldwin on the Asteraceae and the work of David A. Baum on the Malvaceae. The herbarium's research is closely tied to that of other institutions, including the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge, and the Australian National University, which have all collaborated on projects like the Angiosperm Phylogeny Website and the Tree of Life Web Project. The herbarium's researchers have also worked closely with institutions like the National Science Foundation, the National Geographic Society, and the World Wildlife Fund, on projects like the All Species Foundation and the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation.

● Education

The herbarium offers a range of educational programs and resources, including undergraduate and graduate courses in botany and plant systematics, as well as workshops and training programs for researchers and students. The herbarium's educational programs are closely tied to those of the University of California, Berkeley's Department of Plant and Microbial Biology and the Department of Integrative Biology, with contributions from institutions like the California State University and the University of California, Los Angeles. The herbarium's educational resources are also closely tied to those of other institutions, including the Harvard University's Arnold Arboretum and the New York Botanical Garden's The New York Botanical Garden Press, which have all collaborated on projects like the Botanical Society of America and the American Society of Plant Taxonomists.

● Facilities

The herbarium is housed in a state-of-the-art facility on the University of California, Berkeley campus, with over 30,000 square feet of space dedicated to the storage and study of plant specimens. The facility includes a range of specialized equipment and resources, including microscopes, scanning electron microscopes, and computing facilities, as well as a comprehensive library and archives. The herbarium's facilities are closely tied to those of other institutions, including the University of California, Davis's Center for Plant Diversity and the Stanford University's Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve, which have all collaborated on projects like the California Native Plant Society and the Society for Conservation Biology. The herbarium's facilities are also closely tied to those of other research institutions, including the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the United States Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service, which have all collaborated on projects like the Genomic Science Program and the National Plant Germplasm System. Category:Herbaria