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More Information on the Art of Drying Flowers

© Vickie Ferguson

In my last article I covered ways to dry herbs from your garden so I thought it would be a good idea to follow up with a refresher to my original article of June 1999, The Art of Drying Flowers .

With summer in full bloom, so to speak, all of those lovely, colorful and endless varieties of blossoms are available for one of several drying methods. If you start soon, you could harvest a nice selection of flowers and foliage that will last throughout the summer and into the fall and winter seasons.

Overall, there are numerous ways to dry flowers. All are relatively easy so you can experiment to find the method(s) that gives you the best results. Some flowers dry better using one method versus the other so I've added several links to sites that explain the methods and that will also give you additional useful information.

I also suggest you check out my article, Storing Your Dried Flowers .

METHODS OF DRYING

SILICA GEL- This is by far the most expensive of the drying methods but the good news is, the gel crystals can be used over and over again. If you plan on doing numerous drying projects, the cost will equal out. But if you just plan on a one-time shot, I would suggest the next method.

BORAX & CORNMEAL MIXTURE- I use this method the most. It's easy and inexpensive. Purchase a box of 20 Mule Team borax and a bag of cornmeal. Mix 2 parts borax to one part cornmeal and place a layer in a container (I usually use a shoe box or a plastic deli pastry/pie container), and place the flowers to be dried on the mixture then cover with another layer of borax/cornmeal. Process can take from two to three weeks.

AIR DRYING- Another simple and inexpensive method. Depending on the type of flowers to be dried, you tie the flowers in a bundle and hang them upside down in a dry, dark room. A closet or utility room works just fine. Leave the flowers to dry for several weeks.

MICROWAVE DRYING-For a quick, easy and fast method, please visit this link Clemson University for "how to's" and suggestions for flowers that do well using this process. They also have information about the other methods as well.

Next, this link Drying Roses will tell you how to dry roses using either the drying method or silica gel. Garden Guides has a variety of tips for drying methods along with a list of herbs that dry well and flowers that can be pressed.

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