Perhaps Linnaeus's greatest contribution to education was that he let his students discover nature on their own. He let the group disperse freely and then re-gathered them every half hour to go through what they had found from the three kingdoms, animal, vegetable, and mineral. This teaching method is an excellent way of awakening curiosity and a love of exploring.

Before each excursion, Linnaeus organised his group carefully and chose one student to keep notes, which were then copied by the others in the group. This was a way of rendering the teaching more effective; anyone who has taught in the field knows how much time is spent answering questions from those who didn't hear what the teacher said.

Herbationes Upsalienses was a system whereby different types of nature could be studied all spring. In 1753 Linnaeus wrote a thesis that became a manifesto for Herbationes Upsalienses.