Herbarium

Texas Woman's University Herbarium

After having been dormant for over 50 years, the TWU Herbarium began to be resurrected in 2000 and will be open for use in 2003. The collection has two parts:

• ongoing and newly added specimens
• a historical collection containing specimens donated by well-known Texas collectors and botanists from 1903 to 1947

This historical collection is particularly valuable for the information it provides concerning the flora of several areas in Texas (Dallas-Fort Worth-Denton, Austin-Houston, and Big Bend National Park) at the beginning of the last century.

Significance of the TWU Herbarium

The TWU Herbarium is a modest collection but a very valuable one as a biological information source for studying the North Texas flora, as well as specimens from New England and Mexico collected at the beginning of the last century. The Herbarium involved and will involve both undergraduate and graduate students in curatorial and scientific projects. It represents a source of knowledge for the community and the Herbarium staff will work on making the collection accessible to the scientific and regional communities.