PressedFog

Coastside botanical rooms
Half Moon Bay, California

Folio 01 / coastside studies

Four sheets,
left whole.

Each pressing is treated as the object: plant, rag, linen tape, typed slip. Collector labels already fixed to older sheets stay in place; the field notes beside them belong to this folio.

01 / 04

Bracken

Pteridium
aquilinum

Canyon shade
Half Moon Bay
Full herbarium sheet with a single pressed bracken frond fixed to foxed cream paper with linen tapes and a small typed label
Rag / cream / foxed / three linen tapes

Field breakdown

Latin
Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn
Found
Canyon shade, Half Moon Bay
Method
One frond, laid once. Leave the sheet under weight so the pinnae keep their plane.
02 / 04

California poppy

Eschscholzia
californica

Coastal bluff
Half Moon Bay
Full aged herbarium sheet with several pressed California poppies, orange petals, fine leaves, linen tapes, and a typed collector label
Old herbarium stock / stems taped / petals free

Field breakdown

Latin
Eschscholzia californica Cham.
Found
Coastside bluff, Half Moon Bay
Method
Press the same day or the orange goes dull. Tape the stems and leave the petals untouched.
03 / 04

Giant kelp

Macrocystis
pyrifera

Tide line
Moss Beach
Full herbarium sheet with giant kelp blades folded across cream paper, a dark bladder, photo corners, and a typed Macrocystis label
Heavy sheet / photo corners / salt in the fibers

Field breakdown

Latin
Macrocystis pyrifera (L.) C. Agardh
Found
Tide line, Moss Beach / Pillar Point
Method
Rinse once. Fold the blades to fit, then press under weight. The bladder keeps its dark.
04 / 04

Yarrow

Achillea
millefolium

Coastal prairie
Half Moon Bay
Full cream herbarium sheet with a pressed pale umbel and finely divided leaves beside a historical California plant label
Cream card / stems taped / flower heads free

Field breakdown

Latin
Achillea millefolium L.
Found
Coastal prairie, Half Moon Bay / Montara
Method
The umbels dry almost white. The feathery leaves take longer than the flower heads.