A botanist's best friend

Aug 19 2019

Specimen Stories

Botanists and dogs make good companions in the field. Dogs provide companionship, warn…


By Amy Weiss

Algae Rainbow

Jun 13 2019

Works of Art

Algae specimens can be found in every color of the rainbow.


By Amy Weiss

Ant dispersal

Sep 26 2019

Specimen Stories

Ants might not be the first animal you think of dispersing fruits…


By Amy Weiss

Aquatic Hitchhikers

Sep 26 2019

Specimen Stories

Although all plants need some water to grow, aquatic plants have adapted…


By Amy Weiss

Art Cronquist's Hat

Mar 9 2019

ExpeditionsCollectors

If you spend time looking at herbarium specimens collected by Arthur Cronquist,…


By Amy Weiss

Attractive Frances Baker

Sep 5 2019

Works of Art

This specimen arrived as part of an exchange from another herbarium, wrapped…


By Amy Weiss

Autumnal

Sep 23 2019

Works of Art

Grab a warm beverage and your favorite sweater—the colors on these specimens evoke…


By Amy Weiss

Ballast Plants

Sep 26 2019

Specimen Stories

Ships transporting cargo and passengers use ballast to stabilize the ship at…


By Amy Weiss

Before & After: P. F. Zika 28277

Mar 25 2019

Specimen Stories

The unmounted herbarium specimen, as it arrived at the garden in the…


By Amy Weiss

Bigelow's mushroom photographs

May 25 2022

Works of Art

In the herbarium of the New York Botanical Garden there are over 30,000…


By Amy Weiss

Brown and Beautiful

Nov 1 2020

Works of Art

Whether naturally brown, or turning brown during the preservation steps needed to create herbarium…


By Amy Weiss

Confetti

Dec 17 2019

Specimen Stories

No party is complete without confetti—especially when ringing in the new year.…


By Amy Weiss

Damaged by enemy action

Mar 1 2019

Specimen Stories

Herbarium specimens are windows into the past and can help us answer…


By Amy Weiss

Deck the halls

Nov 19 2019

Specimen Stories

Need some boughs of holly to deck your halls this season? We've…


By Amy Weiss

Draw and Create Specimen Challenge

Apr 15 2020

Works of Art

Herbarium specimens are an important piece of a larger puzzle; helping people…


By Amy Weiss

Duck dispersal

Sep 26 2019

Specimen Stories

As more land is developed, plants have an increasingly difficult task of…


By Amy Weiss

Escapes from cultivation

Sep 26 2019

Specimen Stories

Humans have a long history of moving and cultivating plant species. But…


By Amy Weiss

Fern Fever

Apr 2 2019

Specimen Stories

During the 19th century, a severe case of “fern fever” swept over…


By Amy Weiss

Firewood and pathogens

Sep 26 2019

Specimen Stories

As plants travel the world with people, these plants can bring along…


By Amy Weiss

Floral Fireworks

Jul 1 2019

Specimen Stories

When fireworks are needed, no matter the reason, these herbarium specimens will help…


By Amy Weiss

Fruit-eating lemurs

Sep 26 2019

Specimen Stories

Given the abundance of tasty fruit, it is clear that many plants…


By Amy Weiss

Fruits of Rosaceae

Apr 22 2023

Specimen Stories

Flowering plants differ from all other plants by producing seeds within fruits;…


By Amy Weiss

George Washington Carver

Feb 5 2019

Collectors

George Washington Carver (1860s–1943) was an inventor, teacher, botanist, and mycologist (a…


By Amy Weiss

Good grief, Charles Geyer

Mar 1 2019

Collectors

Charles (Karl) A. Geyer was a pioneer botanical collector of the Northwestern…


By Amy Weiss

Granite outcrop specialists

May 15 2019

Focus on Science

Plants are amazing and can adapt to live in the most unlikely…


By Amy Weiss

Happy Little Trees

Apr 24 2020

Works of Art

I am a fan of Bob Ross and his show The Joy…


By Amy Weiss

Hearts

Feb 3 2020

Works of Art

Herbarium specimens are close to my heart, and it's fun to imagine that…


By Amy Weiss

Hitchhikers

Sep 26 2019

Specimen Stories

Some plants have evolved to literally hitchhike on passing animals. They have…


By Amy Weiss

How did flowers get their meanings?

Mar 27 2019

There were three main sources for the definitions used by the Victorian…


By Amy Weiss

Indicators of past settlement

Sep 26 2019

Specimen Stories

Humans alter the environments where they live and we can use those…


By Amy Weiss

It's not easy being green

May 16 2019

Works of Art

People might pass over these green specimens 'cause they're not standing out…


By Amy Weiss

J. K. Small and the changing Florida landscape

Apr 21 2019

People had been living in Florida for centuries, but there is little…


By Amy Weiss

J. K. Small's exploration in Southern Florida, 1915

Apr 21 2019

Expeditions

John Kunkel Small, botanist and herbarium curator at the the New York Botanical…


By Amy Weiss

John Kunkel Small

Apr 21 2019

Collectors

John Kunkel Small (1869-1938) was a taxonomist and botanical explorer, who specialized…


By Amy Weiss

John Muir

Apr 2 2019

Collectors

John Muir (1838–1914) was an influential naturalist and conservationist, and co-founder of the…


By Amy Weiss

Label Appreciation: Borders

Jul 24 2020

Works of Art

Labels are as important to a herbarium specimen as the plant, alga, or…


By Amy Weiss

Label Appreciation: Favorites

Dec 21 2021

Works of Art

Labels are as important to a herbarium specimen as the plant, alga, or…


By Amy Weiss

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