Section 1

Activity : Collecting and Pressing Plants

Overview:  The following activity illustrates the value of collecting and pressing plants. Students can decorate the covers of their RON journal by mounting their pressing on the front of the journal. Mounting can be done by sealing the pressing between wax paper and the mounting background sheet of paper with a hot iron. These pressed specimens can also serve as the beginning of a useful reference herbarium to help the student identify other specimens found later.

Warning: If you are collecting invasive species Be Careful! Don't spread the seeds that make more weeds!

Grade Level: K-3

Focus: Life Science, Investigation, and Experimentation

Objectives:

1. Students will demonstrate and describe the basic skills and reasons for collecting and pressing plants. 
2. Students will be able to write or tell about the three most important "Plant Collecting Rules" 
3. Students will design and make herbarium labels for their plants 
4. Students will use the pressings to form a herbarium or mount them to their RON journals. 

Site: Classroom & Outdoors 

Time Format: 2 class meetings 
Note: This outdoor portion of this activity may require the assistance/supervision of several other adults. 

Session 1: Collecting & Pressing Plants 1-2 hours 
Session 2: Mounting Pressed Plants 1 hour 
 
 

Session #1 Materials
· Digging tool 
· masking tape 
· clear glue 
· Pocket knife or shears 
· Bags 
· Newspaper 
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Note:  Instructions on how to build a plant press are at the end of this lesson.
 

Advanced Preparation: 

1. Find a suitable "weedy" location close to your classroom or meeting place containing some of the native plants and invasive weeds mentioned in the "RON Dichotomous Key". If a nearby location is not found, you may need to adapt the key to plants that are in your immediate area. An example would be native plants and weeds of your neighborhood/schoolyard. The " Illustrated Field Key to the Flowering Plants of Monterey County" by Mary Ann Matthews can be a valuable reference for this task. Other keys and guides can be useful for other counties. Note: Aquire books that are specific to your region.

2. Construct a plant press using the instructions from ãMaking a Plant Pressä, contained in the RON toolbox. 

3. Construct RON journals for each student. These can consist of a simple construction paper folder in which students will store their assignments. 

4. Make copies of the RON herbarium label or design your own. See RON toolbox. 
 

Activity Session 1: Collecting & Pressing Plants

1. Explain to students that they will be collecting plants for a plant pressing project. Ask: What is the value of Collecting and Pressing Plants? 

Explain that plant pressings: 

· Are helpful for learning about different plants. 
· Can preserve plants when they are in flower for later identification. 
· Can be used to check with an expert if you are not sure about a plant. 
· Can be collected to form a useful library, known as an herbarium, to help identify other plants found later. 
· Provide a record of plant species of an area. 

2. After arriving at the "weedy site" show students a 8 1/2" X 11" sheet of paper and explain that their plant must fit on this sheet of paper. Before students begin removing plants for pressing discuss the importance of "treading lightly".  Give students the following plant collecting rules to follow: 

· Don't take plants you are not going to press.
Take care not to spread the seeds if it is an invasive weed! 
· Know that a plant is safe and won't harm you. (i.e. poison oak) If you are not sure ask. 
· Don't take a plant if you do not see at least 10 of the same kind.

3. Collecting Plants-Various Options 

A. Encourage students to collect a representative plant, or collect a range of flower color, type, etc. 
B. Collect a plant with flower or fruit parts present if possible. 
C. Collect roots of plant if possible. dig carefully around the plant to remove it. 
D. Collect examples of leaves on stem. If their are different leaves at the base collect them as well. 
E. Have students write their name on a strip of paper and place it with their collected plant.
F. Place the plants in bags for identification. 
G. If possible identify each plant & make a separate notebook with the students name and plant collected in the field. 
 

4. Pressing Plants 

A. Have students place the plants in a once-folded newspaper (approximately 15 1/2 X 11 1/2 inches in size). Write the student's name, date and plant collected on a slip of paper. 
B. Instruct students to arrange the plant so the floral parts and other identifying characters are well displayed. 
C. Place the folded newspaper with its plant specimen enclosed between blotters of approximately the same size as the folded newspaper and enclose in plant press. (Plant press and divider cardboard should also be this size or slightly larger). 
D. Apply weight or pressure to plant press by use of weights, straps or tightened rope. 

5. Drying Plants 

A. Specimens should be dried before mounting them for permanent storage in order to obtain a durable sample. 
B. Place plant press in a dry hot area for a minimum of 72 hours at a temperature of ~100 F (Back seats or trunks of cars work fine). Large fleshly specimens may need additional drying. One option is to place fleshy plants in a microwave oven
for 10-30 seconds prior to pressing. 
C. Replace newspaper and blotters as needed if they become too moist (every day or as needed). Dry for 3 to 5 days. 
  

6. Explain to students that up to ~5 days may be required for the drying of the pressed plants. Continue to the next lesson in "Recognize" until the pressings are dry. 

7. Explain to students that they are going to design a label for each of the plants. 
 
 
 

Ask students: 
Why might it be important to label these plants? 

Explain to students that scientists use plant pressing to help identify a variety of plant species. Scientists also save these pressings and build a plant library. Explain that this plant library is called an Herbarium. 
 
 

Have students think about the following question and come up with possible answers. 
What would be important to put on a label with each plant? 

Some label suggestions: 

· Name of School/Collection 
· Name of Location collected 
· Name of plant (Common and Scientific) 
· Date Collected 
· Collector (Student, Class, Teacher) 
· Special Notes 

8. Design your own label and apply to pressings. 

Activity Session 2: Mounting Plants

1.  Have students mount the pressed plants to a clean white sheet of paper using clear glue.  Attach the completed label and store the pressings in a clean dry environment. 

2.   Students can decorate the covers of their "RON journal" by mounting their pressing on the front of the journal.  Mounting can be done by sealing the pressing between wax paper and the mounting background sheet of paper with a hot iron. These pressed specimens can also serve as the beginning of a useful reference herbarium to help identify other specimens found later. 
 
 
 

Wrap-up

1. Ask students: What are the three most important plant collecting rules? 

· Don't take plants you are not going to press. 
Avoid spreading seeds from invasive plants.
· Know that a plant is safe and won't harm you. (i.e. poison oak) If you are not sure ask. 
· Don't take a plant if you do not see at least 10 of the same kind. 
 
 
 

2. Ask students: Why is plant collecting a useful tool? 

· It is helpful for learning about different plants. 
· Can preserve plants when they are in flower and identify them later. 
· Can be used to check with an expert if you are not sure about a plant. 
· Can be collected to form a useful library, known as an herbarium, to help identify other plants found later. 
· Provide a record of plant species of an area. 
 

Going Further: 

Have students discuss/write: Why is it important to not remove rare or uncommon plants in an area? Have students outline, using drawings and reflection writing, the process of collecting and pressing plants in their journals.
 
 
 

Tips on Making a Plant Press

Author: Jon Detka
 
 

Overview
This page provides suggestions and instructions for building a plant press to accompany the RON ãCollecting & Pressing Plantsä activity. 
 

Let the Yellow Pages do the Pressing

Old phone books can function as a plant press if budget and time are scarce resources. Simply place the plants between the pages in the phone book and allow for labels to stick out for easy access. Load multiple books with plants and tie them together with rope. The pressings may take additional time to dry. 
 
 

Plywood Plant Press 

A plywood plant press is an easy to construct tool that will stand the test of time.  The standard size is 12 inches wide and 18 inches long.  For the "Collecting & Pressing" activity it may be necessary to make more than one plant press. These plant presses can be used time and time again for pressing activities. When purchasing the plywood from the hardware store have it cut into 12 inch by 18 inch pieces to simplify construction. 
 

To assemble one plywood plant press you will need: 

1. Wood:  Two pieces of 12 inch by 18 inch 1/4 - 1/2 inch plywood. 

2. Cardboard:  At least 5-10 pieces of corrugated cardboard and no more than 20. The cardboard should be cut to 12 X 18 inches with the box cutter. 

3. Newspaper:  A supply of newspaper to be used as blotter paper between cardboard layers. 

4. Tie-downs:  Anything that will hold the layers under pressure is adequate. Suggestions: Bungie cords, rope, or canvas strapping. 
 

5.  Tools:  Box Cutter. 

Assembly & Use

To set up the drying press, each specimen is enclosed between two dry newspaper layers separated by cardboard. 

The press sequence, starting from one end, is as follows: cardboard, newspaper, specimen, newspaper, cardboard. 

Some people use only one newspaper sheet per fold, but two sheets per fold tends to mold better around stems of woody specimens and produce smoother leaves and flowers. 

Whenever specimens with particularly bulky stems, fruits, or flowers are put in the drying press, additional packing of folded driers, newsprint, or specially cut corrugates must be inserted both to apply proper pressure on thinner plant parts and to allow the press to stack evenly. 

Note: Fleshy fruits can be stored separately in jars of alcohol or other preservatives. Uneven stacks always tend to squirt out on the bulky side when pressure is applied and few things are more conducive to frayed nerves than an unruly press after a hard day.