One of the training resources that has been produced for use on Soqotra has been a guide to mounting herbarium specimens. The hard copy of this guide was written in Arabic. Presented here are the photographs from the guide with some explanatory text in English, the Arabic version of the text is more detailed. The photographs were taken at RBGE and the text was translated into Arabic by Abdul-Wali Ahmed Al Khulaidi and Mirranda Morris.

The sequence below assumes that you have assembled the materials you need and that you have properly pressed and dried you specimens.

	1. Before sticking anything down work out where the plant, capsule and label with be positioned on the sheet.
2. The label must be stuck down in the bottom right hand corner of the sheet.
	3. The capsule can be placed anywhere on the sheet that fits in well with the shape of the plant but it is usually placed on the top right or top left corner.
4. Dilute some PVA glue with water and spread it on a sheet of glass that is slightly larger than the mounting sheets you are using. The consistency to which the glue is mixed will depend on the type of plant material and can only really be judged by experience but will be thinner for softer material and thicker for hard foliage.
	5. Place the plant on the glass, in the glue. The idea is to get an even covering of glue on the side of the plant that will be facing the mounting board. The glue can be left on the glass for the entire mounting session - just add more glue or water as required. The glass should be carefully cleaned at the end of the session though or it will be difficult to use next time.
6. Flip the plant over on a clean sheet of news paper and check that no areas have been missed. If they have you can add more glue with a brush.
	7. Place the plant on the mounting board in the position that you planned earlier. If there are any plant parts that overlap you will have to slip a little glue between them. If you don't do this they will flap up and eventually break off.
8. Very carefully blot any excess glue off the specimen using greece proof paper or news paper.
	9. Build a multi-layer sandwich of specimens, greece proof paper and thick blotting paper. The greece proof paper should be place on top of the specimen to stop it from sticking to the other layers. The blotting paper acts to absorb any extra glue and as a padding layer.
10. Place weights on the top of the sandwich and leave it to dry for atleast 24 hours.
	11. When the specimens have dried any thick twigs and branches should be made extra secure by sewing down with strong thread.
12. Finer twigs and leaves can be made extra secure using small strips of gummed paper.
	13. The finished product! A good herbarium specimen should last for hundreds of years provided: It has been prepared properly using acid free materials. It is handled with care. It is protected from insect attack. It is protected from water and fungal attack.