Herbarium
What is a herbarium?
A herbarium is a collection of plant material preserved as a botanical record. Most of the collection consists of pressed and dried flowering plants, conifers and ferns which are mounted on stiff card. However, the collection also includes items that can't be pressed such as cones, nuts, seeds, spikes, large thorns and seedpods.
The specimens are catalogued and stored in special cabinets arranged in a specific order for easy reference. With the correct care these herbarium specimens should keep without deteriorating for hundreds of years.
The collection
The Eastwoodhill Arboretum herbarium was set up initially with funds from the Stanley Smith Horticultural Trust in 1994, and is housed in the Douglas Cook Centre for education.
The herbarium was established to hold specimens of the wide variety of plant species grown in the arboretum. It is also a regional herbarium for plant material endemic to, or of significant botanical interest to, the East Coast region. The herbarium curator is working with the Department of Conservation to collect this material.
At present, there are 1800 mounted specimens in the herbarium.
Use of the herbarium
Educational groups can be arranged with Eastwoodhill Arboretum's curator Paul Wynen to use material in the herbarium. He can also provide instruction on all aspects of herbarium curation such as collecting, pressing, mounting, and preserving specimens.
Interested botanists, students and plant lovers can also arrange to see the herbarium when they visit the arboretum by prior arrangement.
