[Nhcoll-l] [HERBARIA] displaying plants

Wed Jan 11 18:28:41 EST 2017

This is a great discussion.  In my previous life as an art framer (supporting myself through undergrad school), we saw all the time how light, and specifically sunlight, can be so damaging and cause fading to art pieces.  It is really a myth that basic glass blocks out UV rays - this is only true if you have high quality museum glass (i.e. which is REALLY expensive) but then again, I’ve never even seen this tested.

Interesting side note:  The issue of UV came back to haunt me last month because we are in the middle of renovating our university greenhouse and our plants will be sharing the space with some new butterfly and spider research. I discovered that researchers in this case do want the UV light exposure because butterflies need it to trigger reproduction and possibly navigation perception.  Normal glass will work in this case, but not polycarbonate greenhouse glazing (in fact, plastic in general tends to block out UV).  So maybe if they made the display windows at FLMNH out of large plexiglass…..

Theresa

Theresa M. Culley, Ph.D.
Professor & Provost Fellow
Department of Biological Sciences (CINC)
University of Cincinnati
614 Rieveschl Hall
Cincinnati, OH  45221-0006
Office: 703 Reiveschl Hall
Tel: 513-556-9705
Web: www.homepages.uc.edu/~culleyt/CulleyLab.html<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.homepages.uc.edu_-7Eculleyt_CulleyLab.html&d=CwIGaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=S3ybmRtuJyYCuobWq63BxKxQh4X2Hg6crE7lBPvXmbM&s=d1V4zPr9L97_Kznpj-eoaGO_XXh7vNT0ox0NMuhEAYc&e= >
Email: theresa.culley at uc.edu<mailto:theresa.culley at uc.edu>

On Jan 11, 2017, at 4:48 PM, Herrick Brown <BrownH at dnr.sc.gov<mailto:BrownH at dnr.sc.gov>> wrote:

Hi Kent,

You’ve documented this very well and thanks for sharing.  I wonder though if light is the primary culpable agent, or if elevated temperature under display glass (i.e. greenhouse effect) may have played a larger role in the fading of the examples you shared.  I ask this since I’ve seen similar results when specimens spend too much time in a drying oven (with no light).  You note ‘little or no climate control’.

Best,
Herrick

From: HERBARIA [mailto:herbaria-bounces at nacse.org] On Behalf Of Perkins,Kent D
Sent: Wednesday, January 11, 2017 4:35 PM
To: Debra Trock <dtrock at calacademy.org<mailto:dtrock at calacademy.org>>; nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu<mailto:nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu>; herbaria at NACSE.ORG<mailto:herbaria at NACSE.ORG>
Subject: Re: [HERBARIA] displaying plants

Hi Deb,

We have been working on an exhibit for the FLMNH 100th Anniversary (the herbarium is actually older ☺).

We learned from an earlier experience that light is certainly an agent of deterioration!  We placed some duplicate specimens in a display case for public viewing which faces a covered walkway from October to mid-Feb.  The window "supposedly" has UV protection but I believe it does get some strong direct sun. There is probably little or no climate control.

Here is a comparison of the specimens before and after:
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.flmnh.ufl.edu_herbarium_specimens_zoom_imagezoom-5Fhtml5.asp-3Ffolder-3D240-26image-3D240186a1-23ImageTop&d=CwIGaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=S3ybmRtuJyYCuobWq63BxKxQh4X2Hg6crE7lBPvXmbM&s=Fgz5lnxjfGL_Ii2Pk4xtqLfxzCcykOGUEp9YukUnRro&e= 
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.flmnh.ufl.edu_herbarium_specimens_zoom_imagezoom-5Fhtml5.asp-3Ffolder-3D240-26image-3D240186a2-23ImageTop&d=CwIGaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=S3ybmRtuJyYCuobWq63BxKxQh4X2Hg6crE7lBPvXmbM&s=Wqg0ykbi9kgiTAccpjxiFJXeoYbBorFw0KTK9PCQODc&e= 

https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.flmnh.ufl.edu_herbarium_specimens_zoom_imagezoom-5Fhtml5.asp-3Ffolder-3D240-26image-3D240162a1-23ImageTop&d=CwIGaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=S3ybmRtuJyYCuobWq63BxKxQh4X2Hg6crE7lBPvXmbM&s=25q6ldT1hr1U4jkQJyt33fcsRmliJZUkHgAPjFszGIE&e= 
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.flmnh.ufl.edu_herbarium_specimens_zoom_imagezoom-5Fhtml5.asp-3Ffolder-3D240-26image-3D240162a2-23ImageTop&d=CwIGaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=S3ybmRtuJyYCuobWq63BxKxQh4X2Hg6crE7lBPvXmbM&s=c_gAQwjR9BzLh8zSuo_pmOjCH5dRkIy6A2Uy2fKaxIw&e= 

The specimens in our new exhibit will definitely be sheltered from light.  But, to be safe we are not using any accessioned material.  We are creating “surrogate” specimens or high quality photographs.  In fact, I think the public would be just as pleased with the photos of the specimens as they are with the real thing.

There was an inquiry on this subject some while ago, I think on NHCOLL.  Tim Dickinson (https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.eeb.utoronto.ca_people_d-2Dfaculty_Dickinson.htm&d=CwIGaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=S3ybmRtuJyYCuobWq63BxKxQh4X2Hg6crE7lBPvXmbM&s=_xxoHFr7GJDxryxDN26Bf-lnMDMZbM0-2jz_YeKVsFs&e= ) responded with the following:
----
“The experience of the ROM Green Plant Herbarium is similar to that of others who have replied to this enquiry: herbarium specimens placed on display fade. In our experience, rotating the contents of display cases is usually impractical, and doing so would take away time from more pressing activities. Where they can be mounted a few feet away from a museum visitor, color scans of specimens are almost indistinguishable from the real thing.

My colleague, Deb Metsger, describes how she and her co-workers dealt with this issue in part of a report she made on the ROM's " Life in Crisis: The Schad Gallery of Biodiversity" that opened in 2009. This report was published in the Bulletin of the Canadian Botanical Association, and is available online at https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.cba-2Dabc.ca_Bulletin-5F43-5F3.pdf&d=CwIGaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=S3ybmRtuJyYCuobWq63BxKxQh4X2Hg6crE7lBPvXmbM&s=8feH5z0E94RcASVkgKrMFP76AdSHNkCmFupIq8h4wrs&e=  (p. 12 of the .pdf file, page 60 of the Bulletin). The report describes how the gallery team used scans of herbarium specimens, real plants, and models to convey the diversity of plants to museum visitors, not as backdrops to animal displays, but rather as vital components of diverse ecosystems. It may be of interest to others confronted with similar challenges
---TAD.”
We’ve found that publication to have a lot of helpful hints.
Best wishes,
Kent
---------------------------
Kent D. Perkins, Manager of the Collection
University of Florida Herbarium (FLAS)
Florida Museum of Natural History
379 Dickinson Hall
PO Box 110575
Gainesville, FL  32611-0575
Ph. 352-273-1990
---------------------------
From: HERBARIA [mailto:herbaria-bounces at NACSE.ORG] On Behalf Of Debra Trock
Sent: Wednesday, January 11, 2017 12:46 PM
To: nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu<mailto:nhcoll-l at mailman.yale.edu>; herbaria at NACSE.ORG<mailto:herbaria at NACSE.ORG>
Subject: [HERBARIA] displaying plants

Does anyone have experience with different ways of preserving/presenting plants for exhibitions?  We are planning an exhibit of California coastal life and a portion of that exhibit will be devoted to plants and algae.  Our exhibits team is asking for advice on interesting ways (besides herbarium sheets, fake plants, or living plants) to preserve plants for exhibition.

I have no experience in this realm, so am open to any ideas or suggestions.

Deb

Dr. Debra Trock
Director of Science Collections
Senior Collections Manager, Botany
California Academy of Sciences
55 Music Concourse Drive
San Francisco, CA 94118
dtrock at calacadmy.org<mailto:dtrock at calacadmy.org>
PH:  415-379-5363
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