Courses in botany have been taught at Mount Holyoke College since it opened in 1837. At this time, the course of study in botany consisted solely of the identification and classification of flowering plants. Mary Lyon began an herbarium in the year that the Seminary first opened, and in 1861, Lydia Shattuck began her major contribution to the herbarium. In 1878, Lydia Shattuck opened the botanical gardens at the Seminary. In 1884, a significant expansion of the department occurred when Henrietta Hooker taught a class on mosses. Also added at this time were classes in general morphology and classification of phanerogams and general histology and physiology and systemic botany. Until the 1896/1897 academic year, botany was a required subject of all students at the College. In the 1897/1898 academic year, botany became an elective subject. The Botany Department was a formal department at the College until the 1940/1941 academic year, when it became the Plant Sciences Department. In the 1960/1961 academic year, it was renamed the Botany Department at the request of faculty, staff, and students. It remained the Botany Department until 1963/1964. In the following year it was merged with the Physiology and Zoology Departments to form the Biological Sciences Department.