The collection as of August, 2023 contains 2147 specimens. The majority of specimens have been collected in Gila National forest and other areas of SW New Mexico. Many specimens were donated by Jack L. Carter, the author of Trees and Shrubs of New Mexico. Dr. Carter was a long-time resident of Silver City, NM, which is also the home of the Gila National Forest Herbarium. Dr. Carter gathered numerous volunteers to document the flora of SW NM during the 1990s. The specimens collected by Dr. Carter and volunteers make up the bulk of the Gila NF Herbarium. Vascular plants are the focus of the herbarium with lichens absent and only two moss specimens present. The Poaceae is especially well represented in the collection.