Project Number: 1230-21000-050-01
Project Type: General Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Sep 24, 2008
End Date: Sep 03, 2010

Objective:
Investigate the taxonomy and characteristics of plant species grown as ornamentals in the New York metropolitan area, and provide herbarium resources for the National Arboretum, the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, and cooperating institutions to support and enhance future scientific study of the cultivated ornamental plants of this area.

Approach:
A collector or collectors employed by the Brooklyn Botanical Garden will prepare herbarium specimens from as many species as possible that are grown as ornamental plants in the region around New York City. Sampling will begin with the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, and extend to include other sites in the New York metropolitan area. For each species encountered in appropriate condition for herbarium collecting, one herbarium specimen will be collected for the National Arboretum herbarium, one specimen for the Brooklyn Botanical Garden herbarium, and (when possible) up to four additional specimens to be used for exchange with the herbaria of other cooperating institutions. Data collected will include the location of the plant, the provenance of the germplasm (when known), significant characters that may not be permanently preserved with the specimen (such as growth form, odor, color of flowers and fruit). Brief notes may also be made of any evidence noted of spontaneous reproduction in the vicinity of the planting, of heavy damage that might be caused by disease, insects, or abiotic factors, and any other available data that may provide insight into the biology or ornamental value of the plants in the site. The Brooklyn Botanical Garden PI will identify an appropriate collector or collectors to carry out the collecting. The collector(s) will be trained in techniques for collecting herbarium specimens and supervised by the Brooklyn Botanical Garden PI. Unmounted herbarium specimens with the data recorded on appropriate, archival-quality labels will be supplied to the herbaria: one complete set to the Brooklyn Botanical Garden Herbarium, and one complete set plus exchange sets to the herbarium of the U. S. National Arboretum.