Preserving Flowers
Pressing

  • Choose flowers such as pansies, roses, daisies, ferns, or violas.
  • Place two or three blooms at a time side by side on a piece of blotting paper.
  • Lay the flowers exactly the way you want them to dry--be sure and fold the petals out in the way you want them to stay.
  • Cover the flowers with another sheet of blotting paper.
  • Weight down with books, bricks, or some other heavy object, wait about 2-3 weeks before removing the pressed flowers.
Air Drying
  • Choose flowers such as babys breath, globe amaranth, strawflowers, statice, Chinese Lantern, yarrow, and larkspur.
  • Cut after the dew has dried in the late morning.
  • Remove all the leaves from the stems.
  • Tie several at a time together with string or florists wire.
  • Hang upside down in a cool, dark, dry place such as a basement or closet.
  • Leave until all the moisture has evaporated, this usually takes about two to three weeks.
Microwave Drying
  • Choose flowers such as dahlias, roses, mums, and asters.
  • Fold paper towels around the flower blooms and place in microwave.
  • Put a plate over the folded towels to keep the flowers flat.
  • Place a glass of water in the microwave along with the flowers.
  • Test your flowers to determine exactly how long it will take--start out at one and a half to two minutes on high.
  • Remove, wait five minutes and check.
  • Flowers will feel brittle to the touch if dry.
Using a Drying Agent
  • Drying agents include silica gel, sand, and kitty litter.
  • Choose flowers such as snapdragons, marigolds,scarlet sage, zinnias, calendula, and daisies.
  • Cut flowers in the middle of the day. Leave the stems short.
  • Fill the bottom of a dish or box with about an inch of the drying agent. Place your flowers on top.
  • Carefully pour in more of the drying agent until the flowers are completely covered.
  • Leave for several days, until flowers feel paper-like to the touch.
  • The dried blooms can be wired with 20-gauge florist wire for use in arrangements.
Tips
  1. A dessicant such as glycerin may also be used to preserve flowers.
  2. To dry hydrangeas and heather, simply place them upright in a vase with about one half inch water. Let the water evaporate. These plants will dry on their own.
  3. Herbs that also dry well include sweet marjoram, chives, thyme, lavender, bay leaves, and sage.
  4. Dry stems, leaves, and seed pods to add to your flower arrangements.
  5. After your flowers are completely dried, spray them with hair spray or lacquer. This will strengthen them and help hold the petals together.
Preserving Flowers