DIY HERBARIUM SHEET

TOOLS
1. Scissors/Knife 8. Plastic Carry Bag
2. Pencil 9. Labels/Sticky Notes
3. Craft Glue 10. Rubber Band
4. Pen 11. Cardboard Piece
5. Newspaper 12. Heavy Books/
6. Teaspoon Blocks/Bricks
7. Smart Phone
PARTS
1. Naphthalene Balls 6. DIY Herbarium Sheet
2. Water Template
3. Tissue Paper 7. Transparent Plastic File
4. Plant Specimen Cover
5. Paper Cup 8. Paper Cobra File
INTRODUCTION
Herbarium is a place where dried and pressed plant specimens, mounted on
sheets are kept systematically according to a widely accepted system of
classification. In this TACtivity, you will make a herbarium sheet for specimens
you can find in your neighbourhood.
PRECAUTIONS
1. Handle scissors with care.
2. Wash your hands thoroughly after collecting the samples.

STEP 1 - COLLECTING THE PLANT SPECIMENS

1. Using scissors/knife, cut the twig (twig is a tiny shoot growing from the
branch which contains leaves, stem, flower, and buds) part of the plant.
[Here I have collected the rose periwinkle (commonly called graveyard plant)
plant's twig which is commonly found in our surroundings]

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 [Selected plants should be good representatives of the species and should
contain all the essential features necessary for identification, i.e. leaves, stems,
flowers & seeds. It should be free of insect damage, rust or disease]
[Snap few pictures of the specimen before and after collection]
[In the fields, the tools required are mainly a trowel (digger) for digging roots
(in case of herbs and shrubs), scissors and knife for cutting twigs (in of case of
small plants), a stick with a hook (for collection of parts of tall trees)]
2. After collecting the specimen from your surrounding, you can store it in a
plastic bag to avoid damage to the specimen plant collected.
3. Using a pencil, note down the specimen record like name of the plant, date
of collection, collector name, site of collection and collection number. Ensure
to record the details on a sheet of paper, resembling a label, and then keep it
inside the plastic bag containing specimen.
4. Blow air into the plastic bags and secure it with a rubber band as shown.
This is to maintain moisture inside the plastic bag.

STEP 2 - PRESSING AND DRYING

1. Place a cardboard piece (30 cm x 30 cm) on a flat surface. Now, unfold the
newspaper and place it on the cardboard as shown.
2. Arrange the plant carefully on the newspaper, above the cardboard piece,
with the leaves spread out and not overlapping.
3. Spread the petals of the flower (if petals are closed)and press down with your
finger at the centre of the flower (pistil) to reveal both the top and the reverse
side for illustrating the arrangement of floral parts and parts. Turn or flip some
leaves or a single large leaf as shown to understand about the venation of the
leaf.
[If the specimen is too tall for the sheet, then make sharp bends in the stem so
that the plant fits the sheet.]
4. Now, place tissue paper over the pressed plant to absorb the moisture and to
speed up the drying process.

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6. Cover the tissue paper with the other side of the newspaper. Now, place
another cardboard on it along with some heavy books/blocks/bricks on top of
the cardboard, applying pressure evenly throughout the cardboard.
[You can follow the above process to dry as many samples that you like,
before placing the cardboard on the folded newspaper (covering the
specimens)]
[Inspect regularly at least once a week. Depending on the plant being pressed
and the drying conditions, a dry specimen will be ready anywhere between two
days to three weeks]

STEP 3 - MOUNTING AND LABELLING

1. Carefully place the specimen, with the reverse side facing upward, on an A4
size sheet. Gently dab diluted glue on the reverse side of the dried plant
specimen using a tissue paper.
[Add one teaspoon of acid-free adhesive glue to a container and add half a
teaspoon of water. Mix it well]
[Be very gentle and very careful as the dried plant specimen is very delicate
and it may get damaged very easily while dabbing the glue]
2. Take the herbarium mounting sheet template printout. You can print it using
the link provided at the end of this guide. 100 GSM A4 sheet is recommended.
3. After applying glue, carefully stick it on the mounting sheet.
[If you find some leaves are detached from the stem then using the picture
as a reference (that was taken in the beginning) stick the leaf in its place]
4. You can fill in the details given at the right corner of the mounting sheet for
the easy identification of species.
[If you find difficulty in finding the botanical name, genus, family, etc., then you
can download any plant finder app from the playstore]

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STEP 4 - STORAGE

1. The prepared herbarium specimen sheet needs to be stored properly for

future reference. This can be done by inserting it into a transparent plastic
file cover as shown.
2. The prepared herbarium sheets can be stored in paper cobra files.
[The prepared herbarium sheets are easily prone to insects/pets. The most
common pest of the herbarium specimen is the biscuit beetle, Stegobium
paniceum]
[You can keep some naphthalene balls inside the file to resist the pest]
[Regular freezing (every six months) is another recommendation, as is
regular inspection to check for infestation and damage]

TROUBLESHOOTING
1. The specimen is taking a very long time to dry - You can keep it in sunlight
for a quick result.
2. The specimen is infected with fungus - Discard this and prepare a fresh
sample. Always select a plant that is not infected.

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