OLD TAG

whitespace.gif (43 bytes)
menubar

HOME PAGE
IN THIS ISSUE
PERENNIALS
ANNUALS
EDIBLES
TREES & SHRUBS
LAWN CARE
PROJECTS
WILDLIFE
TOOLS AND TIPS
DIGGIN' IN
MESSAGE BOARD
LINKS
DAILYPRESS.COM

 

Year-round blooms

This wreath will remind you of summer's sweet beauty

Our gardens fade into memory each winter. You can change all that by drying many of your garden flowers and using them to decorate indoors.

Jerri Hopkins has been drying flowers for decades, using them as touches in custom floral arrangements for her shop, Plantiques in Newport News.

High in the hot, dark attic of the historic Hilton home that houses her business, Jerri hangs bunch after bunch of plant material upside down so their shape stays nice while they dry. Some floral experts say a cool, dark place is best but Jerri finds the heat of a summer attic does the trick.

The garage usually yields too much humidity, causing the flowers to mildew or mold, she says.

For drying, she favors Silver King artemisia, globe amaranth, golden yarrow, hydrangeas, roses and okra pods.

Hydrangeas can be tricky to dry. You have to pick them at just the right time, says Jerri. That right time is when the flowers are slightly mature, taking on an opaque look. The blooms will feel a bit papery and rustle when you touch them.

``Everyone wants them to be blue when they are dry but that's almost impossible,'' says Jerri. Instead, nicely dried hydrangeas take on purplish, greenish and beige tones.

To dry hydrangeas and roses the easy way, place long stems of the flowers in a vase containing one inch of water.

Leave the flowers and they should dry in three days to a week, depending on how dry the flowers are when you pick them.

This method really works for the florist-type American Beauty red roses, says Elaine Robinson, a floral designer at Plantiques.

By chance, she discovered this process when she placed a floral arrangement of roses in one of her bathrooms at home.

As she kept going in there to admire them, she realized the flowers were drying beautifully. The red roses dry to dark reddish-purplish tones that complement hydrangeas in a dried wreath or tabletop arrangement.

Roadside plants good for drying include goldenrod, Queen Anne's lace and milkweed pods.

Dry pansies on a paper towel in the microwave, 10 seconds at a time.

TO MAKE THIS WREATH

Here's how to make the dried hydrangea and rose wreath created by Plantiques.

Materials: 1 grapevine wreath (24-inch one pictured); 14 large mophead dried hydrangeas; 20 dried roses; glue sticks and glue gun; clear sealing floral spray.

Directions: Separate hydrangeas into smaller bunches and place around wreath. Adhere them with hot glue once you are satisfied with placement. Tuck in and glue dried roses. Attach hanger made with pipe cleaners. Spray with product such as Floralife sealer for dried materials.

Note: Indoors this wreath should last about three years; spray dust it each year with aerosol hair spray or more dried material sealer. Outdoors, the wreath will last about a year; keep it out of sun to maintain the hydrangeas. You also can create this wreath look in all silks or a combination of silks and dried flowers.

Sept. 1998

Right Rail Ads

OLD TAG


   

Please contact us with questions or comments
about Hampton Roads Gardening and Home.

home | perennials | annuals | edibles | trees & shrubs | lawn care | projects | wildlife
tools & tips | diggin' in | message board | archives | subscribe | dailypress.com
Copyright © 2000 Hampton Roads Gardening
   

OLD TAG