Sugar pine
Called "the most princely of the genus" by David Douglas, sugar pine…
Weird & Wild Legumes
Cabinet of CuriositiesSpecimen Stories
Members of plant family Fabaceae (bean or legume family) produce a kind…
A botanist's best friend
Botanists and dogs make good companions in the field. Dogs provide companionship, warn…
The Language of Flowers
Throughout time, people have assigned meaning to flowers, and many cultures have…
Escapes from cultivation
Humans have a long history of moving and cultivating plant species. But…
Western Road Trip
In the summer of 1952, recently retired Wabash College¹ botany professor Albert…
Label Appreciation: Borders
Labels are as important to a herbarium specimen as the plant, alga, or…
Traveling Plants
While plants can’t walk, they can definitely travel. Plants have evolved a…
George Washington Carver
George Washington Carver (1860s–1943) was an inventor, teacher, botanist, and mycologist (a…
Brown and Beautiful
Whether naturally brown, or turning brown during the preservation steps needed to create herbarium…
Western Road Trip: Crater Lake
It might be hard to believe the Bechtels could take their eyes…
Women in Genera
What's in a name?Women in Science
For as long as we've been using binomial nomenclature to name species,…
Dog Days of Summer: Bad Dog!
Specimen StoriesWhat's in a name?
Dogs have not always been the beloved companions and family members they…
Indicators of past settlement
Humans alter the environments where they live and we can use those…
Palm Patterns
Creating specimens of palms pose a challenge to collectors—how best to trim, arrange,…
Fruits of Rosaceae
Flowering plants differ from all other plants by producing seeds within fruits;…
Polka-dot Ferns
Unlike flowering plants, ferns reproduce with spores instead of seeds. Fern spores…
Modern Art
Herbarium specimens play an important part in plant science research. But the specimens themselves can…
Seuss-ian Specimens
While the illustrations in books by Dr. Seuss depict fanciful folliage, reality…
Draw and Create Specimen Challenge
Herbarium specimens are an important piece of a larger puzzle; helping people…
People for Scale
A picture is worth a thousand words, and sometimes it's easier to…
Women's Scientific Empowerment
Natural history was immensely popular in the Victorian era, but women were…
Good grief, Charles Geyer
Charles (Karl) A. Geyer was a pioneer botanical collector of the Northwestern…
Confetti
No party is complete without confetti—especially when ringing in the new year.…
Autumnal
Grab a warm beverage and your favorite sweater—the colors on these specimens evoke…
Springtime with Peter Zika
If seasonal allergies or the depths of winter have got you down,…
It's not easy being green
People might pass over these green specimens 'cause they're not standing out…
Aquatic Hitchhikers
Although all plants need some water to grow, aquatic plants have adapted…
Chock-full of chromosomes
Cabinet of CuriositiesFocus on Science
Behold this fern which has the highest recorded chromosome number of any living…
Season it with Leaves
Culinary herbs are plants with aromatic properties and that are used for…