Herbarium Milestone: Preserving our Past, Present, and Future

A flowering branch of spicebush native to Connecticut was recently logged as the 200,000th specimen in UConn’s George S. Torrey Herbarium. Since 1898, when the University was known as the Storrs Agricultural College, the herbarium has played a critical role in research and education for generations of students and faculty, and now hosts the world’s largest collection of plants native to the Nutmeg State.

The milestone specimen was collected by independent study student Michelle E. Hernandez ’22 (CLAS). Hernandez’s project documented woody plants in their winter conditions and fills gaps for future researchers.

This article originally appeared in UConn Today. Read the rest of the story here.

Photo by Monstera

By Francesca Crivello
Francesca Crivello Assessment & Technology Coordinator