Drying Naturals Part 1: Flowers,Weeds & Herbs

All the pretty things are in bloom. It's time to start picking & drying for natural crafts.You just might be surprised at what can be dried.

First, the grasses. Any grass that has formed a seed head is ripe for drying. Pick them, long stemmed, in bunches. Tie them together at the stem ends. Hang them upside down. Choose as many different grasses as possible. You will want a good variety for different kinds of crafts. If you have ornamental grasses, such as elephant grass, that's great. They can make dried arrangements all the more special.

Second, weeds . Yes you read it right. There are many pretty and interesting weeds. The only rule is to make sure they are not poisonous. Smartweeds make a great base for potpourri. Be careful if you tend to have sensitive skin. They get their name from the acrid juices in their stems that causes "smarting," hence the name, smartweed. You can use gloves when picking and bypass the "smarting". You can find it in pink, rose-colored and white. They tend to grow in pastures. When you pick them, strip off the leaves. This will allow them to dry faster. Tie them in bunches and dry upside down. When completely dry, strip flowers from the stems. Keep them in an air-tight container, in a cool dark place, or the colors will mute.

Our next weed is docks. Pick these interesting-looking weeds when the seed heads turn brown. Strip off the leaves and dry them standing in a vase.

Next we talk Cockles. They grow two to three feet tall and have very attractive lavender-pink flowers. These flowers tend to close up a bit when drying, but their color shows through. So they are worth drying.

Most of us are familiar with buttercups, those delicate little yellow flowers we used to put under our chins as kids, to see if we liked butter. They, too, can be dried. Cut the flower off of the stem and dry them, upside down, on a screen rack.

Now for the flowers. Nearly every flower is dryable - some for the entire blossom, some for their petals only.

Daisies, black-eyed Susans, and asters are commonly dried. They can be dried upside down for a closing-up look, and right side up for an open-flower look.

Go To Page: 1 2 3