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ORGANIZATION OF THE HERBARIUM

Herbarium specimens are mounted on 100% rag paper, with locality data, collector information and determination printed on a label affixed at the lower right corner of the sheet. Each sheet is sequentially numbered as it is prepared for inclusion. Within the herbarium, specimens are stored in one of six compactor modules that occupy the Specimen Collection Room. The vascular plant collection is filed by family, all of which are arranged according to the Engler's Syllabus der Pflanzenfamilien (1954, 1964) system which starts with gymnosperms followed by dicots then monocots. Type specimens are in a separate fireproof Type Room and are filed alphabetically by genus and species using the basionym. Most of the type specimens are also on microfiche, and data for all type specimens are in a computer database.

Within each of the major taxonomic categories mentioned above, filing is a geographically modified alphabetical system by genus and species with cultivated specimens filed separately at the beginning of each genus. All folders are color-coded. The color-coded filing order starts with cultivated plants followed by a geographic sequence as follows:

Folder sequence:

Cultivated

Non-Californian North America

California

Mexico except the State of Chiapas

Chiapas, Mexico

South American and West Indies

Europe, Middle East, and North Asia

East, Southeast, and South Asia

Pacific Islands including Australia and New Zealand

Africa

 

Within these major (i.e. color-coded) geographic categories, there may be secondary geographic categories that may be used and are marked on the folders (i.e. U.S. plants by State, Californian plants by county, Mexican plants by State, Chinese plants by Province etc.). To help you maximize your research time in the collection and avoid misfiling we request that you do not refile specimens. Our technical staff will refile all material for you.

Because all Chiapas specimens in lime green folders are in a database, any determination changes for these specimens must be turned over to the CAS staff so that the database can be up-dated. Also no Chiapas plants are to be moved between folders but should be given to departmental staff if the plants are in the wrong folder.

Although there are additional complexities to the filing system, the following is an outline of how the folders are arranged within a family. However, please note that the cultivated plants (orange folders) are filed at the beginning of each genus in the same sequence listed below under B. Because the sequence of sheets listed below under B2 is alphabetical, specimens must be kept in order within the folder(s), but there is no particular order within the folders for the sheets listed below under B3.

A. Undetermined to genus with colored folders for each geographic region in the color sequence listed above (sometimes folders are also marked for different countries or other regions that fall within these major geographic regions)

B. Determined to genus or beyond
1. Folders for undetermined to species (sometimes at the beginning of an A-Z folder)
2. A-Z folders by species with usually only 1-2 sheet per species
3. Separate folders for species with colored folder for each geographic region containing the species in the color sequence listed above (sometimes the species are further divided alphabetically with separate folders for infraspecific taxa). If a particular taxon has its own color-coded folder for one region it should have its own color-coded folder for all other regions where it occurs even if the folder has only one sheet, but sometimes this is not the case and the additional specimens might be found in the A-Z alphabetical folders for the other geographic regions.

Non Vascular plants are at the beginning of the compactor sequence and are organized geographically according to the above system but are not seperated by family.