About the Hornsby Herbarium Collection

This Collection has been compiled by the Hornsby Herbarium group – a collaboration between Hornsby Shire Library & Information Service and the Australian Plants Society, North Shore Group.

The Collection consists of dried, pressed specimens held in large folders in Hornsby Central Library, and an Online Herbarium on Council’s website. The Online Herbarium has about 950 native plants found in Hornsby Shire, and about 300 introduced plants. The collection area includes private land, Council land, Crown land and National Parks.

The plants have been collected, scanned or photographed, and described by a small group within the Australian Plants Society. Past and present collectors include Jenny Lewis, Ross Doig, Tony Lewis, Noel Rosten, Pat Pike, Max Gregory, Barry Lees, Wendy Grimm and Helen Ray. Collecting began in 1995 and is ongoing.

Where possible, plants are scanned rather than photographed. This allows the viewer to zoom in much closer to see fine details that may help with accurate identification. Older, poor quality scans are replaced by improved scans as new specimens are found.

Unusual plants are sent to the Royal Botanic Gardens for confirmation of identity. Many rare plants have been found and various organisations informed. All native plants found are listed in the Wildlife Atlas managed by the Office of Environment and Heritage. This database is searchable by the public.

The collectors welcome advice on any errors found in the Herbarium.