98 ESTABLISHMENT OF A NATIONAL BOTANIC GARDEN. 



certain climatic conditions; again others show in what manner they 

 strive to reach the light, etc. In other sections again changes in a 

 plant through internal influences, natural and artificial, are exhib- 

 ited. Some plants are grouped according to sex relationship ; their 

 relations with and influence on the insects that are attracted by 

 them as well as the influence of hybridization and bastardizing. For 

 plant physiology experiments and other experiment cultivations on 

 a smaller scale certain portions of land are reserved. 



Very few of the older and standard functions of the garden have 

 created as much interest as the grouping of plants according to 

 geographical location. 



In the exhibition of plant life in countries outside of Europe spe- 

 cial effort has been made to represent the natural plant associations 

 and connections. This has been of big value, since in the propagation 

 and transplanting of these plants from one place to another great 

 thought had to be given to the original conditions covering a health- 

 ful existence of the plants, and to anticipate any detrimental effects 

 varying climatic conditions would have on plants so transposed. 



Plant groups of subtropical countries can naturally only be ex- 

 hibited in the open during the summer months; during the winter 

 they have to be stored in separate conservatories. 



B. FUNCTIONS OF A BOTANIC MUSEUM. 



While botanic gardens have for centuries been considered a nec- 

 essary attribute to universities, and ofttimes also metropoles have 

 installed them as interesting and educative establishments, botanical 

 museums did not come into existence until comparatively recent 

 times. Although originally the administrative officials of botanic 

 gardens and students in botany had recognized the necessity of 

 having an herbarium and continuing its enlargement as one of their 

 most important obligations, very few ever carried it forward to a 

 sufficient degree, The most that could be expected in the early days 

 was the gathering of indigenous woods, of seeds, and fruits, and 

 perhaps reproductions in wax of various varieties of fruit, edible 

 and poisonous fungi, etc. These exhibits were augmented from time 

 to time by travelers and sailors bringing with them from tropical and 

 other foreign countries particularly conspicuous fruits and seeds 

 which were gradually combined with the other exhibits. In this 

 manner the botanic museum developed. Alexander Von Humboldt 

 was particularly active in the gathering of botanic and herbaria 

 material. 



Tn general the functions of a botanic museum are three, namely : 

 First, it should contain as complete as possible all available plant 

 varieties suitably arranged for scientific study. It should strive to 

 expand the availability of the natural plant system as Avell as be 

 corelated to plant geography, morphology, anatomy, physiology, and 

 palseo botany. It should contain, in particular, material for investi- 

 gation of such varieties as are not locally cultivated or even in the 

 best-equipped botanic garden can not generally be cultivated with 

 success. This might be considered 90 per cent of the higher order 

 of plants and nearly all of the lower. Second, it should contain as 

 complete material as possible for the purpose of applied and eco- 



