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My First Year Drying Flowers for Vases

For the last few weeks my Monday vases have been showcasing some of the plant materials I dried last summer; drying flowers was a goal I had for 2025 after reading a couple of books I had received the previous Christmas. So here is a little summary of my experiences.

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First of all, these are the books I used for help and inspiration:

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‘Forever Flowers’ by Ann Lindsay

And

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‘Everlastings’ by Bex Partridge

In ‘Everlastings’ there are some beautiful ideas for how to use both pressed and dried flowers, most a little beyond my talent! However, I found the information on the process and above all the list of flowers and foliage that can be dried extremely helpful. I was unsure of myself and how my flowers would dry, but now that I have a year of testing things out I will definitely try some of the ideas presented here, such as a floral brooch, a gathered bouquet, and perhaps even a wreath. The tone of the book is very calming and friendly, and I feel it was written by a kindred spirit! Here is a page spread from ‘Everlastings’:

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‘Forever Flowers’ is also a beautiful book, using mainly botanical style drawings of suggested materials. Something I also liked especially about this one is the detailed description of the plants, in alphabetical order and with pictures and information on how to grow them and how to dry and prepare them, as you can see in the photo of a page spread below:

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There were a few ideas at the end on how to arrange them, but the focus on this book is definitely the plants to choose. Very useful for me indeed, and I would recommend both of these books as they are quite different from each other and yet both exceptionally well-thought out and helpful.

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I am sure many of my readers have dried flowers at some stage themselves, but if you are hesitant at trying, perhaps my own experiences may help. It is so much simpler than I thought and the worse thing that can happen is that not everything will turn out as expected. But some things may be a big success and will surprise you, like they did me!

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I had no idea that these Helipterum flowers would remain looking exactly as when I picked them – over six months later!

I bought some very cheap garden shelves (plastic and thin plastic-coated metal) for hanging the materials upside down from or laying them flat.

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Any lightweight shelves would work as they do not need to bear any weight. Or even a wire stretched across a room would function well. The room I decided to use is in our cellar/basement.

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It has a window, which I partially covered, and this is absolutely the key to retaining colour… the darker the room the better. Another key factor to consider is humidity;  although it remains fairly cool in our cellar in summer, I was still a little worried about the levels of humidity, but it worked out fine. By September the humidity level drops considerably here and they dried well. I think an attic space may be a suitable area for drying too.

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Then it was simple – cut the flowers, grasses, foliage etc while dry, preferably in the morning. I cut materials all through the summer, from early July onwards.

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For flowers, pick at their peak. For grasses, as early in their lifecycle as possible. Foliage needs to be very dry. I found that seedheads should be cut almost immediately the petals have dropped. I also found that dense foliage would benefit from being dried flat rather than hanging it up; my foliage all seemed too ‘upright’ as a result of drying it upside down. Also consider that the flowers will shrink considerably, so pick far more than you think you want!

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I tied groups of flowers together with normal garden string in small bunches, mostly of one kind. Then tied them to the shelving upside down. In retrospect I would definitely try what Eliza suggested (thanks Eliza!) and make finished mixed posies which would be ready to pop in a vase when dried. I think I can do that this year, now that I have a rough idea of how some plants dry and what can indeed be dried at all (which was almost everything!). In future I will also make sure I cut stems as long as possible.

The process is a bit messy, as some seedheads pop and scatter seeds everywhere, and leaves do crumble. The grasses tend to fall apart too, and I had a dustpan and brush at hand! I checked regularly, but had no issues with mould. The only issue I had at one stage was little flies – the larvae were possibly in some of the material. But regular checks can keep any such problem easily under control.

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The majority of the materials I saved were dry within a short time… a month or so perhaps? Here is a rough list of some of what I dried:

Achillea, Alchemilla, Calendula, Helipterum, Helichrysum italicum, Helichrysum, Physocarpus, Salvia nemorosa, Statice, poppy seedheads, grasses of all description, Allium seedheads, Hydrangea paniculata, Monarda, Centranthus rubra, Iris sibirica, Anaphalis, Pulsatilla seedheads, Clover, Hypericum, Daucus carota, Thlaspi (Pennycress), and probably many more things.

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Anaphalis

My favourites were the Anaphalis, Pulsatitlla  and Nigella seedheads, Iris seedpods, poppies, Helichrysum italicum, Helipterum and Calendula. And all the grasses. Some I wouldn’t bother with again are the Physocarpus (too crumbly) and the Hypericum, which surprisingly lost almost all its colour and was rather ugly I felt.

But at the end of the day it is all a matter of taste and it is the combinations that make an arrangement look good, with a mix of flowers, foliage, grasses and seedheads. 🌸

Perhaps you have some tips, or are inspired to dry something yourself? Do leave a comment below!

💐

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In a Vase on Monday: Shapely

I am joining Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for her weekly meme. Since I am unable to find any fresh flowers in my garden for a vase this cold January, I am using dried materials again, and have put together a collection of oddities for my shapely vase, all collected from my 2025 garden.

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I think the lack of colour in this arrangement is perhaps compensated for with the mixture of shapes, which become even more pronounced with the light from the snowy garden behind them…

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The very tall spike is a Cimicifuga seedhead.

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These are spectacular flowers late summer, with a divine scent, attractive too butterflies as you can see below…

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… and by late September the seedheads were a beautiful pinky green…

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I cut just one to try drying it, along with a spiky seedhead of a Morina longifolia.

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This is one of the few spiky plants I grow, because it is simply so pretty! Here it is in the summer…

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Both plants dried well, but the colour did fade. (Earlier cutting may help).

The Allium seedheads I dried have also faded, but some more than others retained a slight pinkish hue. I also added a Crocosmia seedhead – another experiment – but I think I should have cut this much earlier too, as it has shrivelled extensively.

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Crocosmia seedhead on the left

Other materials here are Sedum (again, I should have picked it earlier), Salvia nemorosa, the seedheads of wild Thalspi arvense, Echinacea and poppy seedheads, various wild grasses, Centranthus (not terribly attractive once dried!) and wild Achillea (👍).

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An interesting observation was that the dried stems of the Sedum had actually produced some tiny green shoots after being strung upside down for months!

I’ll be posting more about my experiences drying plant materials for vases later in the week. In the meantime, take care in this nasty weather (more snow here) and have a cosy week!

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Ten Days of Plantness 2026, Days 8, 9 and 10

Ten Days of Plantness, running from the 12th to the 21st, is coming to an end. If you have missed my previous posts, this is an annual event thought up by Frank at Sorta Like Suburbia a couple of years ago, so do go and visit him. He has already posted about his plantness adventure 2026, which involved braving a snowstorm!

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A bonus photo of another Primula picked up at my supermarket. 😁

Basically, Ten Days of Plantness means buying ten plant/garden-related items in January. The rules are extremely flexible, as Frank explained in this post. I really enjoy joining him and his partner in crime Kimberley (from Cosmos and Cleome) across the miles. Such a shame I don’t live nearer to join them on their plant-searching outings!

So, to wrap up this year’s event I am sharing three more things I picked up at a garden centre last week on my own little ‘Plantness’ outing.

For Day 8: A new pot.

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The light shade of green (the colour I am craving most this month!) simply cried out to me, and then of course I had to find a nice green plant to put in it. 😉

Day 9: The plant:

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I chose a Peperomia rotundifolia. They are known as Pepperoni plants here, and there are various ones readily available. This was the freshest green of them all. I am hoping it will be like one I had before, and will trail nicely if I stand it on my bookshelf.

Day 10: My final purchase will definitely gain Frank’s approval: snowdrops! Galanthus ‘Hippolyta’ to be precise.

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The three bulbs will be planted out, with fingers crossed, in a shady spot beyond the actual garden… somewhere with a little more shade and moisture than my flower beds.

Well, this meme is supposed to have brought Spring a little faster, but it doesn’t seem to be working… we are having freezing night and day-time temperatures still, despite wonderful sunshine. But without Plantness we may have had as much snow as in eastern Russia. Did you see the pictures?!

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Thank you Frank and thank you Ten Days of Plantness for sparing us that!🤣

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In a Vase on Monday: Light and Shade

As I join Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for our weekly vases, the sun is shining but the temperatures are low and once again I find myself sorting through some dried materials in my cellar. I wanted colour in my vase today, so I picked out some more of the pretty pink everlasting flowers – Helipterum – and added some dried golden grasses and dried meadow flowers.

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The lampshade to the right of this scene cast an attractive shadow. On the left is my bowl of dried Helichrysum flowers.

Moments later I came back to take more photos as the sun had moved lower in the sky, illuminating the arrangement!

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Some clover and Melica ciliata caught my eye, and another grass too…

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And there is this seedhead, which I have found in the meadow two years in a row. I have no idea what it is, as it is clearly an insignificant flower that only stands out when the seedheads form. Any ideas anyone?

UPDATE: Ingwer has found out what that plant is: Thlaspi arvense or Field Pennycress. Thanks Ingwer!

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The Pulsatilla seedheads dissolved into a ball of fluff when I picked them up, but placing them in this bowl gave them their moment of glory. They look so soft and pretty as they capture the sunlight and seem to glow.

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The vase also contains some wild Achillea, Nigella seedheads, a poppy seedhead, Knautia macedonica and some other grasses.

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But I still feel the stars are the pretty pink and white everlasting flowers. ❣️

Have a great week, and I hope you get some winter sunshine!

 

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Ten Days of Plantness 2026: Days 5, 6 and 7

Ten Days of Plantness, running from the 12th to the 21st, is a brilliant way to brighten up a cold and snowy January. Frank at Sorta Like Suburbia thought this up a couple of years ago and I am pleased to join in the fun. If you want to know more, pop over to Frank’s blog, or take a look at my recent posts for days 1 to 4.

So today, for days 5, 6 and 7, I am sharing some purchases made on my visit to a large commericial garden centre on the other side of town. I usually prefer my local nursery, but they have almost nothing at this time of year. Even though many shelves were empty and the outside section was closed, the garden centre managed to fill out the houseplant section with mainly orchids and peace lilies etc.  So, for Day 5, this is where I found a bargain Cyclamen for 2,99€! It is a lovely deep purple colour (it looks paler and redder in the photos), but I chose this one for the added interest of its pretty leaves.öx

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For Day 6 this gardening magazine, strategically placed next to the till, was so tempting with all those spring snowdrops on the cover, so I succumbed! A  bit of colour and inspiration is nice in the winter. And what more could you ask for on a cold January morning… a  coffee, some flowers and something gardening related to read. 😁

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And then, for Day 7, a bunch of gorgeous tulips and roses. They were actually bought at the supermarket on my way home, so were very reasonably priced. Do you buy cut flowers in winter too? It is so nice to have flowers in a vase at this time of year and I really love this colour!

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I have three more things to share for the rest of the Ten Days of Plantness… coming soon!

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Have a lovely Sunday!

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Ten Days of Plantness, 2026: Days 3 and 4

Ten Days of Plantness, running from the 12th to the 21st, is the brainchild of Frank at Sorta Like Suburbia and is intended to brighten up the coldest days of the year and hurry Spring along. If you want to know more, pop over to Frank’s blog, or take a look at my recent post for days 1 and 2. There are so many benefits to joining in. Here are just a few:

You have fresh green and a splash of colour indoors IN JANUARY!

You don’t need an excuse to go the nearest nursery

This will prompt you to wake up out of hibernation modus and get a seed order placed!

👍👍👍

The weather has been atrocious recently – icy and very cold – but over the past couple of days the ice and snow has gradually melted away, and the first thing I did (naturally!) was visit the big garden centre the other side of town!

More on that soon, but for day three I am sharing a recent seed order which has just arrived. I usually buy my seeds from a couple of suppliers, one of which lists everything on the order confirmation in German with no botanical names and no photos, so I will spare you that. But they do package the plain seed envelopes so nicely into larger decorative envelopes, separating them into Flowers, Vegetables, Herbs, Perennials, Biennials and – strangely enough – Cosmos, which gets a package of its own!

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This order includes much the same as every year: Borage, Salvia viridis (in case not many of last year’s seed themselves around), Strawflowers, Cosmos, Calendula, Aubergines!, Runner Beans, Swiss Chard, and a few perennial herbs to help fill out the Words & Herbs Bed.

The other seed order includes quite a few vegetables, in the hope that I can get at least some of my vegetable garden set up again (it had to be sacrificed when the greenhouse foundations were put in).

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Lots of beetrooot, as I ran out last year… I think the slugs were eating the seedlings and I had to keep resowing.

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I am especially looking forward to the Sunflowers, and a new Echinacea ‘Mellow Yellow’.

And a lovely  Cosmos too…

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Roll on Spring!

My fourth plantness purchase for this year was a small pot of Narcissus from my local supermarket last week, probably Tête à Tête. I placed it in the cooler cloakroom in the hope it will last longer out there. Only one bud was showing on a very short stem when I bought it, and look at it now!

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Do visit Frank to see what he has found for Plantness this January. I’ll be back with more Plantness purchases in a couple of days.  This is such a wonderful way to chase away the winter blues!

 🌺🌸🌺