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Phytoliths-also known as plant opals-are preserved in soils and sediments and have taxonomical relevance, therefore phytoliths can be fingerprints of the vegetation of the period from which they originated. Comparative phytolith studies are essential for finding phytolith morphotypes with taxonomic relevance. These are used to build reference collections for future palaeoecological and archaeobotanical studies. Biogenic silica extracted from the leaves of six woody species commonly occurring in temperate climate plant communities was examined using light and scanning electron microscope methods (Deciduous broad-leaved species: Corylus avellana, Fagus sylvatica, Quercus robur. Coniferous species: Abies alba, Picea abies, Pinus sylvestris). The element content of phytoliths was analysed by SEM EDX and the phytolith taxonomic diagnostic potential of element content was tested by discriminant analysis. An inventory of phytolith types with their anatomical origin was provided and type-frequencies were assessed. Three species have been systematically screened here for the first time in detail (C. avellana, F. sylvatica, Q. robur). This is the first time that a characteristic cubical phytolith morphotype ("Picea-blocky type") originating from transfusion tissue was described as a distinct layer encompassing the central cylinder of the needle. High concentrations of aluminium and magnesium in phytoliths are associated with two of three conifer species. A. alba and P. sylvestris could be differentiated statistically on the basis of elemental content. Our findings open up the possibility to identify these taxa based on their phytoliths and it is anticipated that this could be a useful tool for phytolith identification originating from soils and sediments as well. Moreover, Picea-blocky type allows comparative, in situ studies (amongst others isotopic) to provide the possibility of finding further measurable proxies.

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-The paper introduces the "Zoltán Siroki Herbarium" (on the basis of the MS Excel spreadsheet database of the collection) which is a separate section within the Herbarium of Debrecen University (DE). The Zoltán Siroki Herbarium consists of ca. 20 000 specimens from almost all European countries, but mainly from the historical territory of Hungary. Although ca. 400 botanists contributed to this collection, most of the specimens were collected by Zoltán Siroki in Hajdú-Bihar, Pest and Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén counties. The most rapid growth of the Herbarium took place in the middle of the last century (from the 1940s to 1960s), but Siroki remained an active collector until the 1980s. Some specimens from the Herbarium of former Royal Seed Testing Station (Budapest) was also incorporated in this collection; they represent gatherings from the last decades of the 19th century and first decades of the 20th century. Data on the most significant part of the collection, representing native plants collected in the present-day Hungary, are summarized in Electronic Appendix 1. (incl. taxon name, settlement, collecting year, collector, file name of documentary photograph).Keywords: Debrecen, flora of Hungary, history of hungarian botany, Košice, natural history collections Összefoglalás -A dolgozat bemutatja a Debreceni Egyetem Herbáriumának (DE) egyik részgyűjteményét, a "Siroki Zoltán Herbáriumot", annak MS Excel alapú adatbázisban rögzített adatai alapján. A gyűjtemény Európa szinte minden országából, főként Magyarországról és Szlovákiából (Kassa környékéről) származó, mintegy 20 000 példányt őriz. Közel 400 (többségében külföldi) gyűjtő gyarapította a herbáriumot, de a legtöbb példányt Siroki Zoltán gyűjtötte, főként Hajdú-Bihar, Pest és Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén megyékben. Java részét a múlt század derekán (az 1940-es és 1960-as évek között) szedte, de gyűjtő tevékenységét egészen az 1980-as évekig folytatta. Az egykori Magyar Királyi Állami Vetőmagvizsgáló Állomás gyűjteményéből is átvett jó néhány lapot, ezek száma néhány százra tehető. Az adatbázis attribútum-táblájának jelentős részét (a Magyarország mai területén gyűjtött, nem kultivált növények példányainak fő adataival) az 1. Elektronikus mellékletben szabad felhasználásra közreadjuk. Igény szerint a szerzők részletesebb adatokat is közölnek.