Bringing Biodiversity Data Online, One Leaf At A Time
Pressed Plants in Movable Stacks The herbarium at the Missouri Botanical Garden contains about 6.3 million samples of pressed plants, stored in manila folders and categorized by family in these movable stacks. The collection is so large it is split between two buildings. Courtesy Missouri Botanical GardenConverting millions of pressed plants into a vital digital archive On Oct. 6, 1846, prisoner of war Friedrich Adolph Wislizenus ventured into the rocky hills near the secluded Mexican town of Cusihuiriachi to collect some plants. He and his westward exploration party had been captured as the Mexican-American War broke out, but the St. Louis-based doctor and naturalist decided to continue his research during his imprisonment. He pulled up a crimson wildflower, henceforth named Heuchera sanguinea, and hiked back to the village. He arranged the spindly plant so that once it was dried and mounted on paper, both sides of its leaves would be visible to...