The Chrysler Herbarium (CHRB) is the last internationally recognized herbarium still in existence in the state of New Jersey. Over 140,000 vascular plant and algal collections, about 7,000 moss and liverwort specimens, and 2,600 lichen specimens form are collection and are arranged and catalogued systematically. The collection is worldwide in scope, with an emphasis on New Jersey and the Mid-Atlantic area, and contains specimens back to the mid-1800s.
The herbarium was built up during the tenure of former curator David Fairbrothers and new collections are continuously being added by students and researchers. The herbarium includes donated collections from the former Douglass College, Rutgers–Camden, Rutgers–Newark, Princeton University, New Jersey Museum of Agriculture, and duplicates from Brooklyn Botanic Garden.
The Willowwood Arboretum collection of cultivated trees and shrubs is housed here and the former Cook College Weed Science collection was also donated by Dr. Richard Ilnicki to Chrysler Herbarium.
The herbarium is the dedicated depository for vouchers from plant-based pharmaceutical, environmental, and agricultural research at Rutgers University. The herbarium regularly hosts research visits or provide data to national and international researchers working on topics from plant taxonomy to invasive species, medicinal plants, and local floristics.
Fungi: The Rutgers Mycological Herbarium (RUTPP), which is housed together with CHRB, has been estimated to contain more than 40,000 fungal collections, which has a strong focus on microfungi and plant pathogens. Dr. James White is the curator of the mycological collections. The herbarium is also the guest home for the collections of the New Jersey Mycological Association.
Online resources: Online information about our herbarium collections is available through several web portals, and we have many ongoing digitization projects which will provide images online of our specimens (see links to each collection for details).
Visiting: For information regarding visiting or information about specimens held in the Chrysler Herbarium (algae, bryophytes, vascular plants, and lichens), please contact Herbarium Director Dr. Lena Struwe,
For mycological collections (except lichens), please contact Curator Dr. James White
Library: The herbarium library contains over 700 books and pamphlets, including manuals, keys, and floras for many U.S. states and foreign countries. Access to these books are only through pre-arranged visits.
Location: The Chrysler Herbarium is housed in Room 001 of the Biological Sciences Building on the Douglass Campus and is only available per appointment for research visits or guided tours.
Staff and student work: The herbarium employs and provides research experiences for many undergraduate and graduate students at Rutgers University. If you are interested in working in the herbarium, please contact Drs. Lena Struwe or James White.