The Marie-Victorin Herbarium is a large collection of vascular plants and bryophytes. Thanks to its 634,640 specimens, the Herbarium is known internationally and ranks fourth largest among Canadian herbaria. It is used for research and education.
The Herbarium is open from Monday to Friday, from 9am to 5pm. People interested in visiting the Herbarium or using the collections must make an appointment with one of the Herbarium’s curators. Group visits are limited and are available through reservation. School groups visits must have a clear pedagogic purpose.
There is a guided tour of the Marie-Victorin Herbarium and the Biodiversity Centre, Wednesdays at 1:30 PM. From November 1 to May 14, departures are from within the first exhibition greenhouse (Molson Hospitality Greenhouse), adjacent to the reception rentre (no tours during the Christmas break). From May 15 to October 31, departures are from the Amis du Jardin botanique stand outside, located across from the ticket counter and only a few steps from the general information welcome booth.
If you are interested in learning how to prepare your own herbarium, you can download the following files (content in French):
Interactive key for interesting families:
Curator
Étienne Léveillé-Bourret
telephone: 514-343-6154
etienne.leveille-bourret@umontreal.ca
Collection coordinator
Carole Sinou
telephone: 514-343-6111 #82095
carole.sinou@umontreal.ca
Volunteers
514-343-6111 #82091
Réal Bathalon
Christiane Bolduc
Jean Burnett
Colette Butet
Daniel Cyr
Andrée de Lamirande
Lucie Fortin
Diane Fournier
Ghislaine Groulx
Stuart Hay
Diane Hébert
Renée Julien
Diane Juteau
Pierre Lamarche
Jacqueline Lemenu
Roland Léonard
Claude Lucier
Françoise Morice-Hanna
Christian Paquin
Monique Paré
Lucie Parenteau
Diane Pelletier
Claire Picotte
Madeleine Roy
Danielle Salvail
Hélène Samson
Francine Simard
For research purposes, specimens may be loaned to recognized educational or scientific establishments. Loans to particulars are possible only through an agreement with a recognized institution. Loan requests must be made to the curator. Loan policies at the Marie-Victorin Herbarium follow the recommendations detailed in Brittonia 25: 307-310.
Plant identification
The identification of plants and the search for information concerning the collections may be done by the Herbarium staff.
Educational and scientific institutions: free
Private firms, agencies: hourly rate (subject to change)
Experts in environmental issues and other related professionals may consult the collections free of charge after agreement with the curators. The Herbarium requests that voucher specimens be donated if the curator deems them of interest.
Consultants should anticipate extra treatment costs for specimens deposited at the Herbarium.
Vascular plants
The Marie-Victorin Herbarium houses more than 650,000 specimens of vascular plants, including some 1,100 types. These specimens originate mainly from Eastern North America, particularly from Quebec and Newfoundland. The Herbarium also has international coverage, notably from North America, Europe and Cuba. Main collections of vascular plants kept at the Marie-Victorin Herbarium:
Newfoundland: M.L. Fernald et al., E. Rouleau, A. Bouchard et al.
Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon: C. Le Gallo, M. Le Hors, R. Etcheberry
Québec: Fr. Adrien Rivard, J. Beaudry, B. Boivin, A. Bouchard, Fr. Cléonique-Joseph, P. Dansereau, A. Dutilly, M.L. Fernald et al., S. Hay, E. Lepage, Fr. L. Lévesque, Fr. Marie-Victorin, H. Mousley, M. Raymond, Fr. Adrien Rivard, Fr. Rolland-Germain, Fr. E. Roy, J. Rousseau, A. Sabourin
Manitoba: J.-P. Bernard, D. Love
Cuba: Fr. Marie-Victorin, Fr. Léon, Fr. Alain, Fr. Clément
Amérique Centrale et du Sud: H. Pittier, H. Smith
Asie, Océanie: D.E. Elmer, O. Degener
WAT [Herbarium, University of Waterloo, Ont.] : J.K. Morton, J.C. Semple
Bryophytes
The bryophytes collection includes about 50,000 specimens. The majority is from the Montreal area, with the remainder originating from the rest of Quebec and North America. Main bryopytes collection at the Marie-Victorin Herbarium:
Québec: H. Dupret, J. Kucyniak
Browse the collection:
Marie-Victorin Herbarium specimens
Bryophytes of Marie-Victorin Herbarium
Marie-Victorin Herbarium inventory