; 





234. Plants ^yiih very delicate corollas ni;\y he placed between sw^\i^ leaves of very 

 thill uiiglazcd tissue-paper. In ^liiftin^^ these plants into dry paper the tissue-paper i9 

 not to be removed, but lifted with its contents on to the dry paper. -, 



235. The number of sheets of paper to be placed between each specimen or sheet of 

 specimens, will depend, on the one hand, on the thicinees and humidity of the ^J>^<^^' 

 ?nens ; on the otlier hand, on the quantity and quality of the paper one has at command. 

 The more and the better the paper, the less frequently ^\ill it be necessary to change 



i 



XXxii INTRODUCTION. 



completeness. Fragirients, such as leaves without flowers, or flowers without leaves, 



ure of little or no use. 



226. If the plant is small (not exceeding 15 in.) or can be reduced to that length 

 by folding, the specimen should consist of the whole plant, including the principal part 

 of the root. If it be too large to preserve the whole, a good flowering-brancli should be 

 selected, with the foliage as low down as can be p;athered with it ; and one or two of 

 the lower stem-leaves or radical leaves, if any, should be added, so as to preserve as 

 jiiucli a^ possible of the peculiar aspect of the plant. 



227. The specimens should be taken from healthy uninjured plants of a mcdiiun 

 size. Or if a specimen be gathered because it looks a little dilfcrent from the niujority ^ 

 of those around it, apparently belonging to the same species, a specimen of the more 

 prevalent form shoidd be taken from the san^c locality for comparir^on. 



228. For bringing the specimens home, a light portfolio of pasteboard, covered with 

 calico or leather, furnislied with straps and buckles for closing, and another for slingmg 

 on the .shoulder, and containing a few sheets of stout coarse paper, is better than the 

 old-fashioned tin box (except, perhaps, for stiff prickly plants and a few others). The 

 specimens as gathered are placed between the leaves of paper, and may be crowded to- 

 gether if not left long without sorting, 



229. If the specimen brought home be not immediately determined when fresh, 

 but dried for future examination, a note shonld be taken of the time, place, and 

 situation in which it was gathered ; of tlie stature, habit, and other particulars re- 

 lating to any tree, shrub, or herb of which the specimen is only a portion ; of the 

 kind of root it has ; of the colour of the flower ; or of any otlier particulars which 

 the specimen itself cannot supply, or which may be lost in the process of drjii^g. 

 These memoranda, whetlu^r taken down in the field, or from the living specimen 

 when brought home, should be wi'itten on a label attached to the specimen or prc' 

 served with it. 



230. To dry specimens, they are laid flat between several sheets of bibulous paper, 

 and subjected to pressure. The paper is subsequently changed at intervals, until they 

 are dry. 



231. In laying out the specimen, care should be taken to preserve the natural posi- 

 tion of the parts as far as consistent with the laying flat. In general, if the specimen 

 is fresh and not very slender, it may be simply laid on the lower sheet, holding it by 

 the stalk and dmwing it slightly downwards ; then, as the up]ier sheet is laid over, if 

 it be slightly drawn downwards as it is pressed down, it will be found, after a few 

 trials, that the specimen will have retained a natural form with very little trouble. If 

 the specimen has been gathered long enough to have become flaccid, it will require 

 more care in laying the leaves flat and giving the parts their proper direction. Speci- 

 mens kept in tin boxes, will also often have taken unnatural bends which will require 



" to be corrected. 



232. If the specimen is very bushy, some branches must be thinned out, but always 

 so as to show where they liave been. If any part, such as the head of a thistle, the 

 stem of an Orolanclie^ or the bulb of a Lily, be very thick, a portion of what is to be 

 the under side of tlie specimen may be sliced ofi*. Some thick specimens may be split 

 from top to bottom before drying. 



233. If the specimen be succulent or tenacious of life, such as a Sedtim or an 

 Orchis, it maybe dipped in boiling water all lut the flowers. This will kill the pl'i^i^ 

 at once, and enable it to be dried rapidly, losing less of its colour or foliage thati 

 would otherwise be the cnse, Diijpin;; in boiling water is also useful in the case 

 of Ilcatlis and other plants which are apt to shed their leaves during the process of 

 dryin 



