Botany - Pressing flowers (Montessori Science activity)



I found these 2 flower presses (one small and one large) cheaply at an opshop. Just a few dollars. As I studied Botany at University and had to flatten myriad Australian flora without a press, I was thrilled to find ones ready-made for my kids. I used to have to place flowers between pages of a phone book and put thick text books on top. Friends even used rocks. Anything that would weigh it down evenly.

Small press

large press

I took them both apart and found they had dried flowers within their pages. The small press was actually more effective as it exerted more pressure on the contents because the corner screws werent too far apart. And it had heavy material (mdf?) to separate each layer. The larger press (which tends to lift more in the middle) used corrugated cardboard to separate the layers, and newspaper directly around the flowers.
It's always good to date the pages as the previous owner did.

Large press when taken apart

previous owners pressings from 2007

dried and pressed rose with date

My older children go walking and have been picking flowers to dry.
We went walking in a national park recently and werent able to pick anything as they had a picture of a flower inside a circle with a red line diagonally through the middle. That was disappointing!



Flowers dried before pressing




previously pressed flowers

 Dont press moist flowers. Let them dry first or they get mouldly and stick to the pages, wood or cardboard they are resting between. Flatten the flower as much as possible first - remove centre bits first.
If there is a particularly thick specimen that is too thick for a press - park your car on it. That should work!



Pressing a rose in little press




putting large press back together with flower inside


Uses for pressed flowers:  Cards.  Art.  Potpourri.