How to Make a Herbarium
How to Create Your Own Herbarium Sheet
Creating a herbarium sheet is a beautiful and meditative way to deepen your relationship with plants. A herbarium is traditionally used for identifying, categorizing, and preserving plant specimens, but it can also be a tool for observing your local landscape more closely and learning about the plants growing right outside your door.
What Is a Herbarium?
A herbarium is a collection of dried plant specimens that are mounted on sheets of paper and systematically arranged for study. These sheets often include detailed notes on the location, habitat, and date of collection. Herbaria are used by botanists, artists, herbalists, and hobbyists alike.
Even in a densely populated city like Berlin, you can find an incredible variety of plant life in sidewalk cracks, vacant lots, and park edges. A single corner of an urban green space might yield red clover, dandelions, stinging nettle, mugwort, plantain, and herb robert—all valuable and interesting specimens in their own right.
Tools and Materials
To begin, you will need:
- A knife or scissors for collecting
- A basket or bag to carry your specimens
- Paper (such as absorbent construction paper or wallpaper lining)
- Cardboard
- A plant press or two heavy books
- Parchment or baking paper (optional, for juicy specimens)
- White cardstock or watercolor paper for mounting
- Acid-free glue or matte medium
- A brush or palette knife
- Thin paper strips for securing stems
Step 1: Collecting Your Specimen
When selecting a plant, try to find a specimen that includes multiple parts: leaves, flowers, stems, and seed pods if possible. This gives a more complete picture of the plant’s anatomy.
For example, Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum) is a wonderful plant to include. It features distinct leaves, small pink flowers, and seed pods. While beautiful, it has a strong odor—part of getting to know your plant intimately.
Other interesting plants you might find in a Berlin streetscape include red clover, mugwort, plantain, and stinging nettle. Many of these have traditional medicinal uses and fascinating botanical histories.
Step 2: Pressing the Plant
Once you have your specimens, arrange them carefully between layers of absorbent paper and cardboard. Make sure the entire plant fits within the dimensions of your mounting paper—this will save trouble later. Remove any extra branches or leaves that create too much bulk.
Place your layered specimen inside a plant press. If you do not have a press, you can use a few heavy books or clamp two boards together with C-clamps. Pressing time can vary from a few days to a couple of weeks depending on the moisture content of the plant. Check periodically to make sure the specimen is drying properly and not starting to rot.
Step 3: Mounting the Specimen
Once the specimen is fully dry, mount it onto a piece of white cardstock. Arrange the plant so that it lies flat and fits within the edges of the paper. Use matte medium or another acid-free glue to attach the specimen by brushing adhesive onto the back of the leaves and other major contact points.
A palette knife can help lift delicate sections, and folded leaves can often be coaxed open again, although they may be brittle.
To secure thicker stems, cut narrow strips of paper and glue them across the stems like straps. This provides extra support and preserves the structural integrity of your sheet over time.
Where possible, show both the front and back of a leaf—this is an important detail in botanical documentation.
A Growing Collection
At the Berlin Drawing Room, our herbarium is a long-term collaborative project. Students from our Botanical Watercolor Workshop contribute specimens collected from the wild plants growing around our Kreuzberg studio—plants that are often overlooked or considered weeds. Over the years, we have included St. John’s Wort, yarrow, couch grass, greater celandine, and many others.
This practice combines scientific observation with artistic engagement, offering a slower, more intimate way to connect with our surroundings.
Ready to Get Started?
You do not need a botanical degree or a wildflower field guide to begin your own herbarium. All you need is curiosity, patience, and a willingness to observe. Start with your local surroundings—urban lots, garden edges, or nearby parks—and see what catches your eye.
