Herbarium collection

The National Herbarium of New South Wales is one of the largest herbaria in Australia. It houses a vast collection of plant specimens from all over Australia, the Pacific region and worldwide.  

The Herbarium holds more than 1 million essential historical and scientific specimens that include vascular plants, bryophytes, algae, and lichens and are critical records for science and conservation. These may be used to document plant diversity, assist with identifying species and other taxonomic levels, and provide morphological characteristics and other data for scientific research.

Some of the significant plant specimens represented in the collection include: 

• Rare and endangered plant species such as the Wollemi Pine (Wollemia nobilis) or members of threatened communities such as the Cumberland Plain Woodland of Western Sydney.

• Important historical collections such as specimens collected by Banks and Solander on Captain Cook's first voyage to Australia in 1770, and Allan Cunningham’s collections that were made during early European exploration of Australia’s interior. 

• Plant specimens from the Pacific region, particularly the southwest Pacific, including New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Samoa. 

• Extensive collections of plants from the Sydney region and the Blue Mountains, dating back to the early 19th century.