166 NATURE TEACHING. 



PRESERVING PLANT SPECIMENS. 



1. Collect specimens of every weed found 

 in the school garden, and preserve them for 

 future examination and reference. This may, 

 with most plants, easily be done by carrying 

 out the following simple directions. The 

 h'rst requisite is drying material, which is best 

 of coarse, stout and unsized paper. Ordinary 

 blotting-paper is much too tender except lor 

 very delicate plants. If nothing better is 

 available newspaper answers fairly well. Cut 

 the paper into single sheets of convenient size 

 (about 16 by 12 inches is recommended). 

 Next obtain two boards, about half an inch 

 thick, and slightly larger thnn the sheets 

 of ch ying-paper. A few stones or bricks (best 

 wrapped in stout brown paper) will complete 

 the plant drying outfit. 



2. In gathering a plant, take care to get 

 as complete a specimen as possible. A perfect 

 botanical specimen should show root, stem, 

 leaves, flowers and fruit. Some plants are 

 too large to allow of this, and in their case por- 

 tions should be selected to make the dried 

 specimen as fully representative of the plant as 

 possible. 



3. Take one of the boards, and put on it 



