Making a life-size leaf collection
In this activity, students gather, press and label plant leaves to create a life-size leaf collection. Students laminate the dried leaves for easier handling and storage.
The collections can be used to:
create a set of life-size leaf identification guides for use in outdoor education settings
create a record of the plants growing along a transect line to view changes in the area on an annual or biennial basis
create a collection of plants for use in observation and classification activities
create a set of sample leaves to find in a scavenger hunt
create a display for aesthetic reasons – similar to the coffee table plant books of the Victorian era.
Life-size leaf collection
Create your own plant identification book by drying, labelling and laminating leaves, flowers and seeds.
By the end of this activity, students should be able to:
understand the processes used for collecting, pressing and drying plant leaves
use resources to identify the plant leaves
decide what information to include on an identification label
discuss the value in having a leaf collection.
Download the Word file (see link below) for:
background information for teachers
student instructions.
Related content
Find out how botany curators at Te Papa collect, describe and catalogue native plants in Documenting New Zealand’s Ferns.
Useful links
Learn more about native New Zealand trees and plants with:
the Department of Conservation’s Experiencing native trees in your green space teaching resource
Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research’s Key to native plants of schools and marae in New Zealand
University of Otago’s Flora Finder app
