PLANTS 75 



specimens of the same plant collected at the same time and 

 place. Under this number — and this is important — enter full data 

 in your notebook, as explained in a later paragraph. The speci- 

 mens next in order will be handled similarly, a new serial number 

 being given to each different kind in turn. Now alternate with 

 driers the folders containing specimens, place the pile between 

 the press ends, and cinch the press tightly by means of the 

 trunk straps. 



The drying operation has now begun. After 12 hours, and at 

 least once every 24 hours thereafter, fresh driers must be 

 substituted for the wet ones, which then should be dried for 

 further use. The process of changing driers at regular intervals 

 is highly important if good specimens are to result, and it must 

 be continued daily until the plants are dry. Grasses and ferns 

 will diy quickly; most other specimens will require only a few 

 days if plenty of warm, dry driers can be used. Fleshy plants 

 dry slowly, of course, and some of them make better specimens 

 if dipped in boiling water for a few seconds before being placed 

 in the press. 



The drying of all specimens can be greatly hastened by using 

 stiff corrugated cardboards alternately with the driers. If this is 

 done, the press should be placed in direct sunshine or over some 

 source of artificial heat, such as a stove, furnace, or engine, so 

 that there may be a continuous passage of hot air through the 

 hundreds of flues formed by the corrugations. However, only 

 strong corrugated cardboards, faced on both sides, should be 

 used; weak ones will prove a nuisance, as the corrugations are 

 bound to collapse under pressure and moisture. When dry, the 

 specimens (still in their numbered folders) should be sprinkled 



