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Ferns and Allies

The Ferns & Fern Allies include Ferns, horsetails, clubmosses, spikemosses and quillworts. They are an ancient group, with fossil evidence of members from 400 million years ago. Around 90% of current diversity in this group is accounted for by…

Fungi

Fungi are an essential part of many ecosystems. The diversity of fungi is only partly understood, and many new species are yet to be discovered. Most fungi are microscopic and hard to detect, but others intermittently produce fruiting bodies –…

Gymnosperms

The gymnosperms, which include cycads, ginkgos, and conifers (pines, spruces, firs, cypresses, and larches) are an ancient lineage of plants, dating back at least 300 million years - today they can be found on all continents except Antarctica. The…

Lichens

Lichens are very diverse; there are c. 20,000 to 30,000 species globally. They are ecologically important; they break down rocks forming stable soils, and they fix nitrogen from the atmosphere making it available for plant growth. Scotland is home…

Spirit Preserved Collections

The spirit collection comprises over 7,000 specimens preserved in fluid which are stored in glass jars in metal cabinets. This method of preservation is particularly important for fleshy flowers, fruits and fungi that are not suitable for drying,…

Silica Dried Collection

A recent addition to the collections at RBGE is the material which has been dried in silica to preserve the DNA for later extraction and sequencing. This technique is commonly used for plant material thanks to its effectiveness in preserving the…

Care and Conservation of Specimens

We have a duty to provide a safe and secure environment for all of our collections. To protect our herbarium specimens from loss or damage, we have specifically designed storage and strict specimen handling guidelines. The condition of the…

Integrated Pest Management

Herbarium Beetle (Trogoderma angustum) and Biscuit Beetle (Stegobium paniceum) have the potential to cause serious damage to our herbarium collections if left unchecked. In the past, pest management in the Herbarium often involved regular use of…

Preparation of Specimens

Each new plant specimen we add to the Herbarium collection is carefully prepared so that it will remain in good condition for use by future researchers. Different herbaria use different methods for mounting plant specimens. The sections below…

Collection Arrangement

The collections have been listed in the order that they occur in the herbarium.

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