22 A FLORA OP MANILA 



Specimens should not exceed 40 cm in length, and if longer than this, 

 as is very frequently the case, the stems can be folded back and forth or 

 cut into sections. In such plants as the grasses and sedges tall specimenb 

 can be folded back and forth like the letter N, or folded several times 

 if necessary, and a piece of tough paper, slit and slipped over the folded 

 ends, will hold the specimen in position -while drying. In species with 

 very large leaves frequently it becomes necessary to take sections only. 

 In large pinnate leaves all the pinnae on one side can be removed and the 

 remainihg part of the leaf folded together for drying; in very large leaves 

 such as the palms, etc., portions only can be prepared, but full notes 

 should be talcen as to size, number of pinnae, lobes, etc. Large fruits 

 can be dried separately, and fleshy fruits can be sectioned or preserved 

 in alcohol or in some other preservative. Thick fleshy roots can also be 

 sectioned and thick stems can be sliced longitudinally. Often it is advisable 

 to dry separately fleshy or large fruits, tubers, etc., but as soon as dried, 

 such detached parts should be placed with the rest of the specimen for 

 permanent preservation. 



In collecting specimens the most convenient method of transporting them 

 is in a portfolio, spreading the plants out on sheets of thin paper. The 

 most serviceable portfolio is a pair of simple frames made of split bamboo 

 similar to and of about the size as the presses, described below, that is, 

 slightly larger than the botanical driers; this double frame can be supplied 

 with straps for convenience in opening and closing, and for purposes of 

 transportation. In wet weather it is also advisable to have a piece of 

 black oil cloth, such as is used for covering the tops of carriages, or a 

 piece of cotton cloth dipped in melted parafin, sufficiently large to protect 

 the enclosed papers and specimens in the portfolio from being wet by 

 rain, etc. In practice it will be found that specimens can be transported 

 from one to two days in such a portfolio, before transferring them to the 

 press, without, in most cases, being seriously harmed; as a rule however, 

 specimens should be arranged in the press as soon as possible after they 

 are collected. 



To dry specimens the selected plants or parts of plants are laid out 

 flat, in as nearly a natural position as may be, between sheets of soft, 

 unsized, porous paper and subjected to considerable pressure. The object 

 is to extract the moisture as rapidly as possible, at the same time keeping 

 the specimens flat and under sufficient pressure to prevent their wrinkling, 

 but at the same time not sufficient to crush the more delicate parts. The 

 papers must be changed at intervals. 



In the Philippines the most generally available soft paper is the 

 common Chinese bamboo paper that can be secured of Chinese dealers in 

 most large towns; this makes excellent driers, especially if stitched into 

 pads of about 4 thicknesses. Blotting paper makes excellent driers, and 

 even old newspapers can be utilized. Driers should be cut or folded into 

 a size not to exceed 45 by 30 cm, and if this is done then there will be no 

 danger of making specimens too large to he mounted on standard herbarium 

 sheets. 



In preparing specimens for drying lay the selected, plants on a single 

 sheet, or between the folds of a double sheet of thin paper, the specimen 

 sheet, then add one or more driers, then another specimen sheet, other 

 driers, etc.; old newspapers make excellent specimen sheets. When .all 



