REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BOGOR -- Indonesia turned out to have a third largest wood library in the world, named Xylarium Bogoriense, established by Dutch colonial since 1914. The number of collection had reached 34,301 wood specimen which consists of 110 tribes (families), 675 genera (genus), and 3,667 species.
"Xylarium Bogoriense was useful for education and historical tours in Indonesia," said wood anatomy of Xylarium Bogoriense, Andianto.
Wood specimen collection in Xylarium Bogoriense was the third largest after the United States (US) with 100 thousand specimens and Belgium with 57,165 specimens. Xylarium is a working unit in charge of collecting and saving the sample of various species of trees throughout the forest in Indonesia.
There are five main functions of the wood library, which was located at Jalan Gunung Batu, Bogor. First, as a supporting place for research the anatomical features of woody plant taxonomy. Second, as reference material for identification of unknown wood samples.
Third, as resources of local names and scientific names of woods. Fourth, as information resources of diversity of wood types in a particular area. Fifth, as resources of distribution territories of certain types of wood.
Andianto said that, starting this year, the Research, Development and Innovation Agency, Ministry of Environment and Forests (KLHK) will examine the fossil wood. Unfortunately, Indonesia does not have a special museum for fossil wood.
"Only Thailand who had. It's beneficial for education, culture collection, as well as historical tours of tree crops in Indonesia," said Andianto.