Log Entry 10/31/2013

Recently, I have been completing Riker boxes to take to the NJEA Convention in Atlantic City. We completed Female American Pokeweed, Helianthus, Phragmites, Cocklebur and Choke Cherry.

Log Entry 10/29/2013

Completed Early Goldrenrod page with
updates research and information

The Sandy Hook Interactive Herbarium Team has been working hard every day completing the labels, boxes and web pages for each plant. The display is nearly finished with the mural panels (completed by Herbarium 2012-2013), televisions and riker box display.

Log Entry 10/25/2013

The labels are being printed for the Riker boxes and the display is being finalized for the NJEA Convention.

Log Entry 10/22/2013

Today my computer started working again so I managed to access my labels again. The display for the NJEA Convention was delivered last week, so Tad, Kevin, Alex and others are working to get it assembled and working. We will finish the riker boxes for the plants we already have pressed before we collect and press more.

Log Entry 10/17/2013

Labels for Phragmites, American Pokeweed, Xanthium and Helianthus are completed except for the QR codes. Once web pages are created for these specimen, I can finish the labels and finalize the riker boxes. The web page for Helianthus exists, but is lacking in any kind of valuable information. I have brought this to the attention of our website team, and we are working to make sure each page has a decent amount of information for each specimen.
My alternate solutions were finished a few weeks ago, but I have done back and revised them to ensure they meet all specifications.

Log Entry 10/15/2013

This week Ms. McD and I found the linen paper in order to begin printing labels. So far, three labels are completed and are awaiting revisions: American Pokeweed, Phragmites, and Xanthium. Once they are finalized, they will be printed and added to the riker box. Some of these plants do not have respective pages on the website, so they will not have QR Codes presently. In the classroom, the riker boxes have been categorized by completed ones, boxes that need to be redone, and boxes that require labels. After going through the DFR shed, Ms. McD and I came across a plant press with plants in it, which I plan to have pressed this week.

Log Entry 10/11/2013

I have contacted Nick Heins from the MAST Class of 2013 and he has agreed to be my mentor. I am continuing to research information about the plants we have collected and to contribute information to the website pages for the respective plants. Three labels are nearly completed. We are also continuing to prepare for the Convention.

Testing

The Plant Pressing Team is testing three different methods of pressing plants to display in the Herbarium. In order to determine which solution will benefit the Sandy Hook Interactive Herbarium the most, each possible solution as been evaluated based on a set of specific criteria. The Plant Pressing Methods are tested concerning Usability, Aesthetics, Maneuverability, Accuracy, Accessibility whether or not it is Informative.

Based on this criteria, Alternative Solution Two seems to be the best method of pressing plants for the Herbarium. Alternative Solution 2 concerned adding features from two or more specimen and displaying them in the same Riker Box. This solution is the most informative and accurate because it will be the most similar to a viewer's perspective of the plant in the wild.
This solution will satisfy our need of displaying plants in an accessible, good looking and accurate way. It will increase the level of detail and specificity of the specimen in the boxes. The only unfortunate aspect of this solution is that it may be more time consuming in the Pressing Process. However, Alternate Solution 2 will not be more complicated, require more expertise, or consume a significant amount of resources beyond what would be required for our current method.

Preparation for Testing

Each Alternative Solution must be tested in order to determine which solution will benefit the Sandy Hook Interactive Herbarium the most. Each possible solution will be evaluated based on specific criteria, and the best solution will be determined. The criteria is as follows:

• Is the label accessible to the average viewer?  
• Are the facts understandable?
• Are the facts cohesive and relevant?
• Is the font large enough and readable?
• Is the label factual?
• Is the picture an accurate representation of the specimen?
• Are all the characteristics true and correct?
• Does the color code correspond with the zone?
• Plant Representation
• Is the specimen accurate?
• Is it an sufficient representation of the plant? Concerning size, color and special features such as flowers, buds and burrs. 
• Is the specimen effective?
• Is the specimen accessible online?

Log Entry 10/8/2013

This week, my Alternative Solutions were completed and published. I have created a label template using the same font as previous riker boxes. I plan to contact my mentor Nick Heins from the MAST Class of 2012 for further information about Riker Box Labels, such as the color coding.I will be researching information about plants we have identified.

Plant Pressing Alternative Solutions

In a Herbarium, plant specimen are pressed in individual Riker boxes. The Riker boxes preserve the plants after they have been pressed. Riker boxes display important information about the specimen on the labels, such as the scientific name, size and general characteristics. There are multiple methods of displaying plants in the boxes.

Alternative Solution 1:

Flowers are included separately
 to show details

              The purpose of pressing plants is to display them in a way that is identifiable. When identifying plants, some of the factors to look for are size, shape or color of the plant. Most dichotomous keys or field guides depend upon the plant's most obvious identifying features, such as leaves, buds or flowers. Including these details in the Riker boxes is extremely important in making sure the plants are accurate representations of the wild specimen one might find on Sandy Hook.

This method of pressing the plants is to display the stem and leaves separately from the flowers, buds, berries or other special or unique features. The features would be included in the same Riker box.  Displaying the features off to the side of the box gives the viewer the opportunity to view closer details. Pressing flowers separately from the rest of the plant allows us to use a larger flower from a different specimen, 
which gives the advantage of displaying greater detail. 

The viewer is given the advantage of seeing the characteristics

 of these features from different angles, which will

 makes recognizing the plants in the wild easier for visitors. 

Representation of a pressed
plant with additional details

These unique characteristics are vital to anyone viewing the Riker boxes. In order to effectively and accurately display the plants, the boxes must include as much detail of as many characteristics as possible. Displaying the features separately allows the general public recognize the plants and identify the specimen. 

This solution offers benefits and drawbacks. Pressing plants in this matter is labor-intensive. Positioning the specimen in the plant press in a matter that will display each feature separately will demand a great deal of skill from our team of plant pressers. Expertise is required to display plants in the Riker Box in an understandable manner. However, this solution results in more informative and identifiable samples of the specimen. 

Alternative Solution 2:

Specimen pressed to display root system

The Sandy Hook Interactive Herbarium provides a resource for the general public and professional botanists alike. Because of this, every specimen must be perfectly accurate and display every detail of the specimen, including roots. Currently, plants in the Herbarium are pressed without roots. During the collection process, plants are clipped at the base of their stems with their roots excluded. 

This method of pressing plants allows the entire plant to be displayed, including their underground portion. This provides more information to each viewer, rather than simply showing the portion of the plant that is usually visible. Roots give evidence of the vegetative zone in which the plants live, as it can be indicative of the type of soil in which they grow. 

Specimen with roots before
the pressing process

This solution involves altering the collection process. Plants must be unearthed from the ground by digging in order to preserve the root portion of the specimen. After collection, the intricate root systems must be rinsed clean in order to remove any extraneous materials such as soil, sand or insects. Pressed plant specimen with roots provide the most informative display.  
This solution offers benefits and drawbacks. More time must be spent collecting plants in the field in order to carefully dig up root systems. Pressing plants will now include an extra step of cleaning the roots. The Riker boxes will be more informative and the specimen itself will be indicative of its vegetative zone. 

Alternative Solution 3:

Riker box displaying only stems
 and leaves of original specimen

In the Sandy Hook Interactive Herbarium, there are many current plant specimens available. Each Riker Box displays the plant with stems, leaves and any unique characteristic or feature in tact. Only the portion of the plant generally visible in the wild is able to be viewed in the Riker Box. The important information of the plant is described on the Riker Box's label. 

This method of pressing plants results in each box being more organized. The empty space created by omitting the extraneous features causes the Riker Box to appear more concise. The viewer is not overwhelmed by a lot of factual information at once.

Plant specimen on display in
Sandy Hook Herbarium

Unique characteristics of each individual specimen are displayed as flatly and as clearly as possible. No additional features are added in the Riker box with the plant specimen. Only the part that is cut from the wild specimen is pressed and displayed. This method of
pressing plants is relatively accurate. Flowers and leaves are a good indication of the species, and leaf arrangement or leaf type are identifiable in a Field Guide. 

This method lacks details of the root systems. Pressing plants in this manner also lacks details of any unique characteristics such as flowers, berries or buds, because these features are only able to be viewed from one angle. This is one of the most widely used methods of Herbaria around the world, and presents many benefits with few drawbacks. Plant collections are efficient. The display is more concise but lacks more specific details and therefore may lack accuracy. 

There are many methods of preserving plants in Riker Boxes. Alternative Solution 1 involves pressing unique features and characteristics separately from the rest of the plant. Alternative Solution 2 involves pressing the roots and underground portion of the plant specimen. Alternative Solution 3 involves pressing only the above ground portion of the plant with no additional features.