[Zonark]

Is there any way to perfectly preserve a plant so that it appears nearly the same as it did the day you picked it? I am not talking about drying the plant as this wilts it, makes it brittle and removes the color. I am thinking more along the lines of encasing the plant with a polymer skin (not in a cube like a big paperweight though!). The plant must retain the structural integrity of its cell walls as well as retain as much of the plant's color as possible.

Is there perhaps a way to dip the plant into a vat of liquid nitrogen transferred to a vat of liquid polymer (or sprayed with said polymer) and then to immediately transfer it to a vat of a chemical catalyst which would harden the polymer instantly? I have considered using clathrate hydrate stabilized cryostasis only because it sounds like the most effective way to do this. Would this put the plant in stasis and prevent decay of pigment and cellulose? Is there another way to do this? Perhaps one less expensive?

Any actual nutritional value in the plant, or ability to revive the plant to its living state is entirely unnecessary. I just desire to preserve the aesthetic appearance of the plant.

Please share your thoughts, even if they are incomplete.

[Borek]

You need to conserve the plant before putting it in polymer, otherwise it will decay, even after freezing. Perhaps bathing it in solution similar to these used in embalming will help.

[Zonark]

Well I found these guys http://www.preservedpalm.net/ http://www.treescapes.com/index.html
Apparently they only use one solution bath, but it contains dyes. Would anyone know how to formulate something like that and would it work for smaller plants?