How to preserve wildflowers for a project?

My son has a project for school where we have to collect 25 wildflowers. I have put them in wax paper and taped the sides together, but they still seem to wilt or dry up. You can't even tell what kind of flower it was. Any suggestions.

How to preserve wildflowers for a project?
place them between two paper towels and then between two microwavable plates. It only takes a few seconds to dry and press them, which is good for impatient people like me, but be careful...you don't want to burn them, practice on a few leaves first. Also, be wary of the plates--they get really hot from the steam!
Reply:Don't use waxpaper, it will hold the moisture and they will rot.



My Grandmother taught me that you can dry flowers by placing them in a book (eg, spy novel, dictionary, cook book, the Bible, any kind of book).

Place the flower between pages of a book and press so it is flattened.Leave the boook on a shelf. It should dry in 3 or 4 days.
Reply:Use a flower press, a small one should be inexpensive. They have layers of blotting paper between two wooden ends with screws through that can be tightened to help press and extract the moisture from the flowers. Alternatively use layers of blotting paper and a heavy pile of books.
Reply:You should press them in a book. I don't know of a way to preserve them and keep their shape, but you'll be able to see a lot from a pressed flower.



He could also go back to his teacher with this question--she must have some idea of how to keep them fresh enough to turn in.
Reply:My gram and I would put them in wax paper, them put them in a hard bound book. Add more weight to the top of the book (dish first and an iron skillet will do)



What about photographing them, or doing drawings of them. don't forget to include a leaf sample, extra points for ingenuity! Teachers like that extra effort. Maybe even include in the report growing conditions each was found in.
Reply:you can try picking them fresh and gently spraying with aerosol starch, it will make them stiff and may help preserve them