Botanical and horticultural library
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

A botanical and horticultural library is a
library A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...
specializing in the preservation and collection of literature and materials about plants. The mission of many botanical and horticultural libraries is to make accessible and available to those who use it the information on this topic.http://www.cbhl.net/, The Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries, mission statement, retrieved August 22, 2010. Botanical and horticultural libraries can be found in arboretums,
botanical gardens A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...
, research institutions, horticultural societies, conservatories, governmental offices, colleges, and universities as part of a larger university library. Typical users include members of various public gardens, students of the life sciences, researchers, and scholars.


Collections

The collections within these types of libraries cover such topics as
flowers A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...
,
grasses Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns ...
,
trees In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are u ...
,
fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...
, aquatic plants,
weed A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, "a plant in the wrong place", or a plant growing where it is not wanted.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. ...
s, algae, pests, and
fertilizers A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...
. The typical collection is composed of books, periodicals, and photo collections. The types of materials depend on the types of patrons. A public botanical garden library may contain books for children, nursery catalogs, seed catalogs, popular how-to publications, movies, and various other media resources. At an academic library, there may be such archived materials, such as historical letters, autographs of famous botanists, plant lists, field notes, and reports of botanic expeditions. Much of the collection in academic botanical and horticultural libraries includes work on the identification of particular plants. Some libraries contain live specimens and preserved samples of plants, referred to as an herbarium. Libraries may also hold highly specialized collections of certain species. For example, The Orchid Library of Oakes Ames is devoted exclusively to
orchids Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...
. The collection is composed of more than 5,000 journals and books devoted to the classification and identification of orchid species around the world.


Patron types

Typical users include: members of various botanic gardens; students of the life sciences including
botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...
,
horticulture Horticulture is the branch of agriculture that deals with the art, science, technology, and business of plant cultivation. It includes the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, sprouts, mushrooms, algae, flowers, seaweeds and no ...
,
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people t ...
,
biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...
,
herbology Herbal medicine (also herbalism) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. With worldwide research into pharmacology, some herbal medicines have been translated into modern remed ...
,
turf grass A lawn is an area of soil-covered land planted with grasses and other durable plants such as clover which are maintained at a short height with a lawnmower (or sometimes grazing animals) and used for aesthetic and recreational purposes. L ...
management; researchers; and scholars.


See also

*
Botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...


External links of notable examples


Botany and Horticulture Library at Library of CongressHarvard University HerbariaNew York Botanical Garden Mertz LibraryNational Tropical Botanical GardenMassachusetts Horticultural Society LibraryThe Lenhardt Library of the Chicago Botanic Garden

The Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical GardensElisabeth C. Miller University of Washington Botanic GardensEleanor Squire Library, Cleveland Botanical GardenHelen Fowler Library of the Denver Botanic Gardens


Other external links


The Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries, Inc.


References

{{Reflist Libraries by subject *