Thu 17 Aug 2023

Flower drying in a few easy steps

Many people know the usual ways of flower drying. From hanging them upside down to dry to placing them in a bowl of silica gel crystals, there are several methods to choose from. However, most of them involve waiting a fair amount of time before you can enjoy the finished product. The good news is that there is a way to dry fresh flowers faster than many of the usual ways. So when you get your next delivery of fresh flowers, you can enjoy them much longer if you take them out of the vase just in time to dry and display them again as a dried flower arrangement. These types of arrangements can look great for months on end and are best suited for country style rooms such as the kitchen, living room or a sheltered area of ​​patio, where they are not vulnerable to wind and weather.

You will need:

  • An arrangement of fresh blooms

  • A microwave safe dish and lid

  • Silica gel crystals

  • 1 cup of water

  • Small paintbrush or toothbrush

Method:

  • If you want to use fresh blooms from your favourite florist, you should ensure that you pat the stems dry with paper towels before you begin.

  • Next, you should inspect all of the petals to make sure that there are no insects hiding between them.

  • Remove any dead or dying plant material since they will not dry well.

  • Fill the dish halfway with the silica crystals. The bottom needs to be completely covered.

  • Place the flowers on top. For this flower drying technique, you should always dry the same types of flowers together.

  • Pour some more of the crystals over the top to completely cover the blooms. You can use a brush to gently spread the crystals evenly over the top.

  • Place the dish in the microwave, uncovered and place a cup of water beside the dish. This helps create humidity and prevent the blooms from drying out too much.

  • Heat the flowers for a minute or two before checking on them.

  • If they are not yet dry, cover again and heat at 30 second intervals. Check on them each time until they are completely dried out.

  • Remove the container from the microwave, cover with the lid and allow to stand partially covered for 36 to 48 hours.

  • Remove the flowers gently from the container and gently dust off.

  • Next, your blooms are ready to place on display.

If you wish to dry out various types of flowers, you should prepare multiple containers with gel crystals. You can use this flower drying technique to create an abundant dried bouquet that you can enjoy for many months to come.