Herbarium Making Experiment
Supplies: Jar with lid, dirt or potting soil, rocks/gravel, little plants.
Step 1: Fill the jar with layers of gravel and dirt.
Step 2: Put little plants like moss, flowers collected from outdoors.
Step 3: Add some of your favorite rocks. We put a little parrot in ours too!
Step 4: Now water your tiny forest and place the lid on. Set the herbarium in a place where it can receive bright but indirect sunlight. (For us, that’s our kitchen window sill.) After a few days, you will see the water cycle begin!
The warmth of the sunlight that gets trapped inside the herbarium jar turns the water to vapor. That water vapor can then condense onto the cool glass and eventually fall back down to the plants (hello, precipitation!) The plants take in the water and then release it, starting the cycle all over again.
Be sure to open the lid of the herbarium and let some fresh air circulate every couple of weeks to prevent mold from growing. You shouldn’t have to water your little rainforest too much, but if it starts drying out, be sure to give it a good watering.
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