To avoid breaking of any of the plant parts, you will want to mount your dried plant to paper. A heavier paper similar to construction paper works best. Gently put a little glue on the backside of the plant and then paste it to the paper (detailed instructions below). Be sure to store all of your plant samples in a safe place.
Glue steps
To avoid breaking of any of the plant parts, you will want to mount your dried plant to paper. The procedure for mounting your plants are detailed below. It helps to layout the plate without glue before beginning these series of steps.
| Prepare a tray with glue. A cafeteria tray works well for this procedure. The glue is standard white glue mixed 50/50 with water. |
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| Spread the glue over the surface so that is evenly covering the entire tray. An inexpensive brush is a good tool for this step. |
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| Place a plant specimen in the glue. Use a light touch for this step to avoid getting to much glue on the plant. |
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| Gently blot away the extra glue on a piece of newspaper. |
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| Place the plant material on the paper and blot away any excess glue with a soft tissue. |
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| Once all the pieces of the plant have been glued on the herbarium page, cover it with a sheet of wax paper. |
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| Cover the wax paper with a heavy sheet of cotton rag paper. |
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| Place a cardboard cover on the entire stack. The pages should now be sandwiched between a bottom and top sheet of cardboard. |
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| Place completed sheets under any heavy materials, such as boxes or books. Be sure to have the entire surface weighted.
More than one set of plates can be placed under the weighted material. Finally, do not forget to label your new herbarium plate. Instructions for labeling your page and a printable label are in the next step. |
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View Citation
Bibliographic details:
- Article: Step 6: Mounting Your Plants
- Author(s): CJ Kazilek
- Publisher: Arizona State University School of Life Sciences Ask A Biologist
- Site name: ASU - Ask A Biologist
- Date published: December 21, 2009
- Date accessed: April 17, 2024
- Link: https://askabiologist.asu.edu/step-six-mounting-your-plants
APA Style
CJ Kazilek. (2009, December 21). Step 6: Mounting Your Plants . ASU - Ask A Biologist. Retrieved April 17, 2024 from https://askabiologist.asu.edu/step-six-mounting-your-plants
Chicago Manual of Style
CJ Kazilek. "Step 6: Mounting Your Plants ". ASU - Ask A Biologist. 21 December, 2009. https://askabiologist.asu.edu/step-six-mounting-your-plants
CJ Kazilek. "Step 6: Mounting Your Plants ". ASU - Ask A Biologist. 21 Dec 2009. ASU - Ask A Biologist, Web. 17 Apr 2024. https://askabiologist.asu.edu/step-six-mounting-your-plants
MLA 2017 Style
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