Natural History Collections

The Kathryn Kalmbach Herbarium of Vascular Plants (KHD), Sam Mitchel Herbarium of Fungi (DBG), and Denver Botanic Gardens Arthropod Collection (DBGA) are an integral part of the Gardens. 

Our natural history collections document vascular plants and fungi from the Southern Rocky Mountain Region, as well as insect, spider, and greater arthropod diversity within the Gardens. At their core, these collections capture species diversity and distribution. Not only do these collections hold precious evidence of how landscapes and populations change overtime – they are also physical time capsules of genetics and morphology. 

In 2020, our collections moved from the lower level of Boettcher Memorial Center to the ground level of the Freyer – Newman Center, which allows them to expand in size and in accessibility to researchers and the public.  

• Kathryn Kalmbach Herbarium of Vascular Plants

• Sam Mitchel Herbarium of Fungi

• Collection of Arthropods