UNC-Chapel Hill, Duke to combine plant collections in Chapel Hill
CHAPEL HILL, NC (WWAY) — UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke University plan to combine their herbarium collections under the management of the North Carolina Botanical Garden, creating what the universities say will be the third-largest university herbarium in the United States.
The combined collection will include about 1.7 million preserved plant specimens. According to the universities, it will rank behind only Harvard University and the University of California, Berkeley, and will be the largest university herbarium in the Southeast.
Herbaria are scientific collections of preserved plant specimens, typically dried, pressed and labeled for long-term study. Researchers use them to examine plant diversity, changes in species distribution, invasive species, land use and long-term climate trends.
The North Carolina Botanical Garden already manages UNC-Chapel Hill’s herbarium and will oversee the combined collection.
Duke announced in 2024 that it planned to relocate its herbarium after determining that its existing facilities would require extensive upgrades. UNC-Chapel Hill’s collection has also outgrown its current space in Coker Hall.
The Duke collection is expected to move to two floors of the former Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center in Chapel Hill in June 2027. Work to prepare that space has already begun.
UNC-Chapel Hill also has a long-term plan to build a Plant Biodiversity Research Center that would eventually house both university collections. No timeline has been announced for that project, and officials say it will depend on future planning, approvals and funding.
“This consolidation will preserve a scientific legacy dating back to 1802, keep the combined collection a vital resource for studying plant diversity in the Southeast, and ensure it continues to advance our understanding of plant life as new tools transform plant research,” North Carolina Botanical Garden Director Damon Waitt said in a statement.
The universities said the Duke collection will remain intact and accessible to researchers, students and other scholars after the move.
Duke will pay the costs associated with packing and moving its collection to Chapel Hill. The universities said preparation of the interim space and other expenses will be supported by philanthropic funding.
