Collecting flowers on trips
I would like to explain a little about my process with the flowers I collect while traveling. And give you some ideas on how to do it in an easy and respectful way.
When I travel I always try to carry a notebook that I use to press flowers, as it is very light and I can keep it in my bag. It has an elastic band that holds the pages together and the flowers are pressed without them coming out of the notebook during the trip.
It is very important that when you cut a flower you do it in a respectful way, a few units from the same plant. I often try to collect the flowers or leaves that have fallen from the plant and are in good condition, but if this is not possible then I cut two or four flowers from the same plant so as not to damage it depending on its size and the number of flowers it has. You always have to respect the environment.
Immediately after collecting it, I carefully place it in the notebook and close it with the elastic that holds it so that the flowers do not fall out.
Once back home, after the trip, I check the flowers and carefully transfer them to a press that I have at home so that they can continue the drying process. Sometimes it is better to leave them in the notebook, I see that if it is difficult to remove them, in which case I wait for the whole process to happen in the notebook.
The flowers or leaves that I collect on trips are flowers that do not have too much volume, since those are the ones that I can press without needing a wooden press and absorbent paper, flowers like daisies, cyclamen, poppies, leaves, wild flowers, or if the flower has a lot of volume I recommend removing the petals and pressing them, then you can recreate the flower by joining the already dried petals.
It is also important to take photos of the environment where you collect the flowers, as this will help you later to catalogue them and know the date and place where you found them. You can write this information down on a sheet of paper in your notebook or bring your photographic catalogue which you can refer to if you do not remember where each flower came from.
You can make a scrapbook that includes pressed flowers and leaves that you found on the streets you walked along during your trip. It's so much fun to relive those moments! I hope you find this information useful.