OUTLINE OF STRUCTURAL BOTANY 53 
always commence with a collection of the commonest plants. If 
one waits for rare or beautiful specimens the collection will grow 
slowly and will be imperfect and unsatisfactory. 
The specimens which are to be preserved must go into the press. 
The form and materials for a press should next be considered. 
The purpose is to dry the specimens in the best manner, and in 
the least practical time. 
A press may be made of two thin boards, a few newspapers and 
a pair of straps with buckles. Dealers supply much better presses 
at a low cost, which are made of thin slats fastened to cross-bars, 
the two sides enclosing the drying papers, straps with buckles being 
used to produce the pressure which should be sufficient to flatten 
the specimens, but not enough to crush them. Such presses permit 
of more rapid drying than those made of boards. A temporary 
press may be made of a number of layers of newspapers laid upon 
the floor or a table over which a board is laid upon which is placed 
a weight. Drying papers are sold by dealers, but by far the most 
convenient papers are ordinary newspapers, not calendered. While 
for some purposes they are not equal to prepared dryers they are 
always at hand. Many persons press small plants between the 
leaves of illustrated magazines. As these magazines are made up 
largely of highly calendered paper absorption is prevented and the 
specimens turn black or the leaves drop off. Experience will soon 
help the beginniner to know about how much paper should lie 
between the different specimens, but one rule might be stated. 
If a very considerable number of plants is to go into the press 
more layers should lie between the different specimens than would 
be required for a few. 
The plant to be preserved should, after being identified, be laid 
carefully between the drying papers in such a way as to show the 
leaves, stem, root, when practical, the flowers and fruit, if the fruit 
and flower are both on the same plant at the same time. If not 
there should finally be a specimen each for flower and for fruit. 
As the specimen is placed between the sheets there should always 
be placed with it a slip of paper with the name of the plant, the 
date when collected, the locality and, generally, the kind of soil 
in which it grew. This slip should be carefully preserved in con- 
nection with the specimen until the latter is finally mounted on the 
herbarium sheet when the record should be transferred to it also. 
Ranunculus acris. UL. 
Englewood, N. J., 
May 15, 1909. 
Found in moist meadows, or dryer soil. 
