-sorry if this is the wrong flair, i'm very new to this sub-
ive been trying to press the leaves of my houseplants when they fall off, so i can keep a scrap book of all the plants ive owned, but everytime i press them, they never fully dry out or they go brown. if i then leave them out to dry after pressing they shrivel up and still brown. even if i leave them with my AC unit as a weight on top for four days they still brown and dont dry out.
in all fairness, im doing it all from scratch and im in no way a professional, i just have no idea how to get a good outcome. any help is greatly appreciated 🙏🏽
the photo is some leaves ive tried to press from my monstera adansonii, theyve been under a weight for about 4 days and when i opened the book they were in this is what they looked like 😭
by Limp-Delay9492
2 Comments
A flower press should work
Place the specimen between pieces of newspaper, then between pieces of corrugated cardboard (you can optionally use blotter paper between those two layers as well). Ideally you would then have the pieces of cardboard cinched down between two pieces of wood (i.e., a plant press) tightened by two straps—though if you don’t have access to this you could use some heavy books on top. Then, you want to get air (ideally warm, dry air) moving through the corrugated cardboard to get the moisture away from the specimen as it’s pressed; you can just point a fan at it for a couple days. The goal is to get most of the moisture out in that first 24 hours, otherwise you risk wilting and mold, but some things do just take longer to dry out than others, in which case changing out wet newspaper and cardboard once a day is advisable. Below are some resources.
Herbarium Handbook 3rd edition
[https://collectionseducation.org/preserve-specimen/](https://collectionseducation.org/preserve-specimen/)
[https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/herbarium/methods/vouchers/](https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/herbarium/methods/vouchers/)