How to make a herbarium: album design and drying plants
Applications from dried branches and leaves are an interesting, original hobby. But before you make a herbarium, you need to stock up on various types of material. You can collect raw materials for compositions in summer and autumn. For each type of plant, there is the most suitable time when its shoots and leaves take on a beautiful color. Collecting, drying, storing leaves is a truly creative process. Modern methods of material preparation allow you to see real art in a simple herbarium.
You can collect absolutely any items. The collection of natural plant parts is called a herbarium. From Latin herba is grass. Previously, the leaves were stored and straightened for crafts using paper. Made this method a popular botanist Luca Gini. Due to the hygroscopicity of the material, the sheets could be in a certain position for a long time and did not deteriorate.
Modern scientists in the field of botany, biology continue to collect rare species. In addition to the usual paper method, collections are placed in digital herbaria. Information about the species is contained in a scanned photograph of a part of the plant. The largest collections are in museums, scientific institutes of the USA, France, Switzerland.
Home collections are common, have their own names. They are used to decorate the interior, they work with them in creative classes in kindergartens and elementary school classes. They are stored in ordinary folders, home-made boxes, on a wall under glass. To create a herbarium, you can use simple improvised materials. It is enough to be inspired by the idea you like and get to work.
What plants and how to collect
The choice of plant material for the collection depends on the purpose of its creation. Typical samples of the usual color, medium shape are suitable for scientific and educational herbariums. To create decorative compositions, bouquets, the most bizarre herbs are suitable. It should be intact bright elements. It is necessary to take sheets with a margin so that it is possible to replace the damaged sheet during drying or during gluing.
You can collect various plants in your own garden, in the park, in the schoolyard. To choose good herbarium samples, you should adhere to the following rules:
You can go in search of material only in dry weather;
The best time to collect is noon or evening, when all the moisture evaporates as much as possible;
Small plants are extracted from the earth along with the root in order to be able to evaluate all its parts;
If a part of a tree or shrub is needed for a herbarium, select its most prominent area, which makes it easier to identify;
If it is necessary that the type of plates in the shoots of hardwood is visible, they should be cut with a sharp knife;
Only healthy parts of plants are suitable for collection. There should not be signs of disease, pests and other defects;
To make an accurate description of the plant, information about the species should be recorded when they are still in their natural habitat.
Options and rules for drying plants
Almost any flower, from a simple field daisy to a noble rose, can turn into an excellent material for postcards and panels. To reduce losses during drying, you need to know how to properly store plants for crafts. There are many ways to prepare the material, thanks to which you can make the raw material flat or preserve its original shape and color.
Natural drying
The easiest way to dry is outdoors. It is popular among private house owners. It is enough to collect flowers or herbs, form small bouquets and hang them on a rope by the stems. If the bundles are not dense, they can simply be spread out on a flat surface. Under them lay a paper napkin and leave it in a well-blown place. Covering, exposing herbarium to the sun is not recommended.
The method of natural drying allows you to immediately prepare a large amount of plant material. This process can last 1-3 weeks, depending on the thickness of the stem and the size of the bud. You must understand that any workpiece will straighten and give it a curved shape will be difficult. Elements for future decor are folded according to the plan and fixed.After drying, the stem is enough to sprinkle with varnish.
Flat Dry Press
This method will help to make plants as attractive as possible and keep them in this form for a long time. Such a technique appeared one of the first, and for many years remained the most popular. But flat drying is not suitable for all plants. Especially juicy specimens will have to change moisture-absorbing sheets several times a day.
The most popular option for drying flat leaves is to put them in a large book between pages. The greens are spread and covered with paper. For weighting add a press. It can be several other books or any heavy object (iron, water container, etc.). The main thing is to provide complete rest to the samples, to exclude their shift.
If the book version is suitable for lovers, then for large-scale professional drying use a special press. A more complex design is two identical planks with holes along the edges for bonding. Plant elements are laid on a plane and clamped with ties. For better and faster drying, the press is taken outside in the daytime.
How to make a do-it-yourself press
It is very simple to make a good drying press for plants at home. It will take two pieces of plywood the size of a landscape sheet, a drill, four bolts with nuts, several sheets of thick cardboard. The work is as follows:
At the edges of the tree, mark the holes and drill according to the size of the thread;
We insert bolts into the lower base of the product;
We lay cardboard, put plants for herbarium on it;
We cover with a blotter and another sheet of cardboard, arrange the leaves in several layers;
We dress the wooden cover on the bolts and tighten;
During drying, all plants take on the shape of the surface on which they lie. Corrugated cardboard, corrugated napkins can be used only if you need to create a specific pattern.
Bulk drying
To keep the samples as natural as possible, use drying in bulk solids. In this way, you can get stunning natural specimens for three-dimensional paintings, bouquets, children's crafts. You will need to choose the right size tank and filler. As a substance for drying, you can use any material that absorbs moisture. Suitable silica gel, cat litter for the toilet based on it, sand and others.
We place the samples in a deep bowl with the hats down and gently pour the bulk material for volume drying. It is important to act slowly, being careful not to damage the delicate petals. All parts of the plants must be completely covered.
Drying time depends on the type and size of plants. On average, it is 2-3 weeks. When the time comes to get the blanks for the herbarium, you need to pour the top layer of filler and gently pull on the stem. The remaining bulk material is not suitable for reuse.
Glycerol drying
This method is used if it is necessary to keep the buds and leaves elastic and natural. Also, glycerin will make the colors of greens and petals darker and more saturated. The storage solution can be prepared independently from simple ingredients.
Pour water into the prepared container, add glycerin in proportion (3: 1). Mix well. On the stem of each plant, make longitudinal cuts with a knife or blade, immerse in liquid. In this environment, the workpiece should be 3-5 days. During this time, the solution must be added, since it will evaporate quickly.
The degree of impregnation can be determined by color. In finished plants, the petals and leaves darken noticeably. After removal, the samples should be laid out on paper and put in a dark place protected from dust. To give the buds an original color, they can be tinted a little from the spray bottle or add food coloring at the stage of immersion in glycerin.
Quick drying with household appliances
Express drying methods with household appliances shorten this process to one day, but can negatively affect the quality of the plant. Due to the high probability of spoiling the sample, such methods are resorted to only as a last resort. You can arrange home drying using the following household appliances:
Iron. Natural material is placed between two sheets of paper, ironed with a hot iron until the moisture evaporates.
Microwave. It is necessary to lay flowers in layers between two tiles and tie. The layers can be made of cardboard or watercolor paper.
Oven. Large flowers on the stems are laid on a dry baking sheet and subjected to processing at a low temperature.
Hair dryer. Leaves and flowers are blown with hot air, adjusting its temperature. To prevent the samples from coagulating, drying is carried out with respite in several approaches.
How to use dried samples
After the most difficult stages of the preparation of the herbarium have been completed, you can begin to create original interior decorations and make beautiful crafts. Rare samples can be replenished or stored for storage until the right moment. There are many interesting ideas that allow you to use dried plants with practical and aesthetic benefits.
Album creation
A special album for samples can be used as a place to store them or to demonstrate collection vegetation. You can buy a finished product for special purposes in the store or make it yourself. The design is absolutely any - with the ability to group by color, type, size. Plants can be attached tightly or temporarily fixed.
A good album for a herbarium can only be paper. Natural materials are better preserved if they are in contact only with tracing paper and cardboard. One page can have one instance or a group.If a herbarium is created for future use, samples can be placed in transparent files and collected in a folder folder.
Creating paintings and panels
Flat wall or floor decor is one of the simplest interior decorations. The panel of dried herbs or flowers can be of any size, represent a rare single copy or various compositions. Small paintings of yellow leaves are made in schools with the onset of autumn.
To create a flat craft, you will need a wooden photo frame, a sheet of paper, two identical A4-sized glasses and a strong hold adhesive. We cover one glass with a white sheet and lay the plants on it according to the scheme we have conceived. It is easier to make the calculation from the middle of the sheet, gradually moving away to the edges. We cover the plants with a second glass and place in the frame, after having previously coated the edges with glue.
Card design
A handmade postcard made of natural materials will be the best gift. As a decor, you can use voluminous flowers or flat leaves. We select cardboard of suitable size and color, put the dried blanks on it. They must be fixed with glue. To exclude falling and deformation of leaflets, we cover them with a self-adhesive film for books. The top layer of the card must be pressed and ironed well with a scissors handle, getting rid of voids. We cut off excess film at the edges.
The gift card does not have to have standard sizes. As a basis, you can use a regular sheet of paper or a thin strip bookmark. You can make out in landscape or book form, with the addition of a picture.
Creating decorative wreaths
The original interior decoration is not necessary to coincide with a particular holiday. You can hang a beautiful craft on a door or wall at any time. Herbarium collected in summer and autumn is used as the main parts.Properly dried samples can be attached to the ring at any time of the year.
To create an autumn wreath of dry material, you need to stock up with a lot of bright flowers and leaves. For the frame you will need wire, thread, cling film. As an additional decor, bows, beads, butterflies and other trifles are suitable. You can make a natural wreath quickly and correctly if you follow the following instructions:
We are preparing the foundation. Twist the wire ring several times. At this stage, it is necessary to provide a loop for hanging the finished product.
Divide the herbarium into bouquets, apply to the frame.
Cut off a coil of 5 cm from the skein of cling film.
We wrap the dry plants alternately with the film to the base, trying to give volume to the product.
If dry blanks have lost their color during storage or there are simply not enough types needed for crafts, the finished wreath can be covered with paint of any color from the spray gun.
Compositions: rules for the composition of dried flowers
Plants that have an attractive appearance after drying are deliberately grown by many summer residents. They can remain on the site all winter for decorative purposes or can be torn green and dried to create stunning volumetric compositions. More often they plant lunaria, immortals, heathers, hare and others.
To create a composition of dried flowers, you need a low and wide pot. The container does not have to have openings at the bottom; it performs an exclusively decorative function. In order for the plants to stand longer and not spill, a floral sponge is placed on the bottom of the vase. Using scissors, we give penoflora the necessary shape and insert the stems of plants into it. The composition should be made according to the following rules:
The largest elements must be exposed first of all according to the idea. Better put them in the center.
We distribute dried flowers of the original form, color, or of which the smallest amount, evenly.
We insert vertical elements. The best place for spiky plants is next to the most inexpressive flowers.
On the edges of the composition we place bushy branches, for example, heather.
The remaining voids should be decorated with low small plants.
Herbarium storage and care
Since dried plants are very hygroscopic, their first enemy is moisture. In damp, they instantly deteriorate. Herbarium can only be stored in a dry room, in closed albums or folders. To protect valuable collections from insect attacks, they are periodically treated with insecticides.
To keep the collection of dry plants as long as possible, it must be handled with care. Fragile specimens react negatively even to the slightest external influence (temperature increase, humidity, shaking, etc.). To handle valuable historical herbarium collections, special techniques have been developed that are indicated on the title page of each collection.
Each collector is simply obligated to label all plants. The stock of dried wood, which has not yet been glued or not used for decoration, should be stored in special folders with sheets laid or in stacks of paper.
Conclusion
Dried plants are not just a great decor, but also a visual aid, material for crafts. From beautiful leaves, branches, you can make a vivid picture or a natural postcard. Crafts from dried raw materials, made even by a child, will perfectly fit into any interior. Eco style accepts everything natural, so the panel of flowers, volumetric compositions will look especially good in it.
Applications from dried branches and leaves are an interesting, original hobby. But before you make a herbarium, you need to stock up on various types of material. You can collect raw materials for compositions in summer and autumn. For each type of plant, there is the most suitable time when its shoots and leaves take on a beautiful color. Collecting, drying, storing leaves is a truly creative process. Modern methods of material preparation allow you to see real art in a simple herbarium.
Content
What is a herbarium
You can collect absolutely any items. The collection of natural plant parts is called a herbarium. From Latin herba is grass. Previously, the leaves were stored and straightened for crafts using paper. Made this method a popular botanist Luca Gini. Due to the hygroscopicity of the material, the sheets could be in a certain position for a long time and did not deteriorate.
Modern scientists in the field of botany, biology continue to collect rare species. In addition to the usual paper method, collections are placed in digital herbaria. Information about the species is contained in a scanned photograph of a part of the plant. The largest collections are in museums, scientific institutes of the USA, France, Switzerland.
Home collections are common, have their own names. They are used to decorate the interior, they work with them in creative classes in kindergartens and elementary school classes. They are stored in ordinary folders, home-made boxes, on a wall under glass. To create a herbarium, you can use simple improvised materials. It is enough to be inspired by the idea you like and get to work.
What plants and how to collect
The choice of plant material for the collection depends on the purpose of its creation. Typical samples of the usual color, medium shape are suitable for scientific and educational herbariums. To create decorative compositions, bouquets, the most bizarre herbs are suitable. It should be intact bright elements. It is necessary to take sheets with a margin so that it is possible to replace the damaged sheet during drying or during gluing.
You can collect various plants in your own garden, in the park, in the schoolyard. To choose good herbarium samples, you should adhere to the following rules:
Options and rules for drying plants
Almost any flower, from a simple field daisy to a noble rose, can turn into an excellent material for postcards and panels. To reduce losses during drying, you need to know how to properly store plants for crafts. There are many ways to prepare the material, thanks to which you can make the raw material flat or preserve its original shape and color.
Natural drying
The easiest way to dry is outdoors. It is popular among private house owners. It is enough to collect flowers or herbs, form small bouquets and hang them on a rope by the stems. If the bundles are not dense, they can simply be spread out on a flat surface. Under them lay a paper napkin and leave it in a well-blown place. Covering, exposing herbarium to the sun is not recommended.
The method of natural drying allows you to immediately prepare a large amount of plant material. This process can last 1-3 weeks, depending on the thickness of the stem and the size of the bud. You must understand that any workpiece will straighten and give it a curved shape will be difficult. Elements for future decor are folded according to the plan and fixed.After drying, the stem is enough to sprinkle with varnish.
Flat Dry Press
This method will help to make plants as attractive as possible and keep them in this form for a long time. Such a technique appeared one of the first, and for many years remained the most popular. But flat drying is not suitable for all plants. Especially juicy specimens will have to change moisture-absorbing sheets several times a day.
The most popular option for drying flat leaves is to put them in a large book between pages. The greens are spread and covered with paper. For weighting add a press. It can be several other books or any heavy object (iron, water container, etc.). The main thing is to provide complete rest to the samples, to exclude their shift.
If the book version is suitable for lovers, then for large-scale professional drying use a special press. A more complex design is two identical planks with holes along the edges for bonding. Plant elements are laid on a plane and clamped with ties. For better and faster drying, the press is taken outside in the daytime.
How to make a do-it-yourself press
It is very simple to make a good drying press for plants at home. It will take two pieces of plywood the size of a landscape sheet, a drill, four bolts with nuts, several sheets of thick cardboard. The work is as follows:
Bulk drying
To keep the samples as natural as possible, use drying in bulk solids. In this way, you can get stunning natural specimens for three-dimensional paintings, bouquets, children's crafts. You will need to choose the right size tank and filler. As a substance for drying, you can use any material that absorbs moisture. Suitable silica gel, cat litter for the toilet based on it, sand and others.
We place the samples in a deep bowl with the hats down and gently pour the bulk material for volume drying. It is important to act slowly, being careful not to damage the delicate petals. All parts of the plants must be completely covered.
Drying time depends on the type and size of plants. On average, it is 2-3 weeks. When the time comes to get the blanks for the herbarium, you need to pour the top layer of filler and gently pull on the stem. The remaining bulk material is not suitable for reuse.
Glycerol drying
This method is used if it is necessary to keep the buds and leaves elastic and natural. Also, glycerin will make the colors of greens and petals darker and more saturated. The storage solution can be prepared independently from simple ingredients.
Pour water into the prepared container, add glycerin in proportion (3: 1). Mix well. On the stem of each plant, make longitudinal cuts with a knife or blade, immerse in liquid. In this environment, the workpiece should be 3-5 days. During this time, the solution must be added, since it will evaporate quickly.
The degree of impregnation can be determined by color. In finished plants, the petals and leaves darken noticeably. After removal, the samples should be laid out on paper and put in a dark place protected from dust. To give the buds an original color, they can be tinted a little from the spray bottle or add food coloring at the stage of immersion in glycerin.
Quick drying with household appliances
Express drying methods with household appliances shorten this process to one day, but can negatively affect the quality of the plant. Due to the high probability of spoiling the sample, such methods are resorted to only as a last resort. You can arrange home drying using the following household appliances:
How to use dried samples
After the most difficult stages of the preparation of the herbarium have been completed, you can begin to create original interior decorations and make beautiful crafts. Rare samples can be replenished or stored for storage until the right moment. There are many interesting ideas that allow you to use dried plants with practical and aesthetic benefits.
Album creation
A special album for samples can be used as a place to store them or to demonstrate collection vegetation. You can buy a finished product for special purposes in the store or make it yourself. The design is absolutely any - with the ability to group by color, type, size. Plants can be attached tightly or temporarily fixed.
A good album for a herbarium can only be paper. Natural materials are better preserved if they are in contact only with tracing paper and cardboard. One page can have one instance or a group.If a herbarium is created for future use, samples can be placed in transparent files and collected in a folder folder.
Creating paintings and panels
Flat wall or floor decor is one of the simplest interior decorations. The panel of dried herbs or flowers can be of any size, represent a rare single copy or various compositions. Small paintings of yellow leaves are made in schools with the onset of autumn.
To create a flat craft, you will need a wooden photo frame, a sheet of paper, two identical A4-sized glasses and a strong hold adhesive. We cover one glass with a white sheet and lay the plants on it according to the scheme we have conceived. It is easier to make the calculation from the middle of the sheet, gradually moving away to the edges. We cover the plants with a second glass and place in the frame, after having previously coated the edges with glue.
Card design
A handmade postcard made of natural materials will be the best gift. As a decor, you can use voluminous flowers or flat leaves. We select cardboard of suitable size and color, put the dried blanks on it. They must be fixed with glue. To exclude falling and deformation of leaflets, we cover them with a self-adhesive film for books. The top layer of the card must be pressed and ironed well with a scissors handle, getting rid of voids. We cut off excess film at the edges.
The gift card does not have to have standard sizes. As a basis, you can use a regular sheet of paper or a thin strip bookmark. You can make out in landscape or book form, with the addition of a picture.
Creating decorative wreaths
The original interior decoration is not necessary to coincide with a particular holiday. You can hang a beautiful craft on a door or wall at any time. Herbarium collected in summer and autumn is used as the main parts.Properly dried samples can be attached to the ring at any time of the year.
To create an autumn wreath of dry material, you need to stock up with a lot of bright flowers and leaves. For the frame you will need wire, thread, cling film. As an additional decor, bows, beads, butterflies and other trifles are suitable. You can make a natural wreath quickly and correctly if you follow the following instructions:
Compositions: rules for the composition of dried flowers
Plants that have an attractive appearance after drying are deliberately grown by many summer residents. They can remain on the site all winter for decorative purposes or can be torn green and dried to create stunning volumetric compositions. More often they plant lunaria, immortals, heathers, hare and others.
To create a composition of dried flowers, you need a low and wide pot. The container does not have to have openings at the bottom; it performs an exclusively decorative function. In order for the plants to stand longer and not spill, a floral sponge is placed on the bottom of the vase. Using scissors, we give penoflora the necessary shape and insert the stems of plants into it. The composition should be made according to the following rules:
Herbarium storage and care
Since dried plants are very hygroscopic, their first enemy is moisture. In damp, they instantly deteriorate. Herbarium can only be stored in a dry room, in closed albums or folders. To protect valuable collections from insect attacks, they are periodically treated with insecticides.
To keep the collection of dry plants as long as possible, it must be handled with care. Fragile specimens react negatively even to the slightest external influence (temperature increase, humidity, shaking, etc.). To handle valuable historical herbarium collections, special techniques have been developed that are indicated on the title page of each collection.
Each collector is simply obligated to label all plants. The stock of dried wood, which has not yet been glued or not used for decoration, should be stored in special folders with sheets laid or in stacks of paper.
Conclusion
Dried plants are not just a great decor, but also a visual aid, material for crafts. From beautiful leaves, branches, you can make a vivid picture or a natural postcard. Crafts from dried raw materials, made even by a child, will perfectly fit into any interior. Eco style accepts everything natural, so the panel of flowers, volumetric compositions will look especially good in it.