Flowers aren’t just flowers. They have meanings and memories attached, and so it becomes important to know how to preserve flowers, especially roses. If you are unsure about what to do with your Valentine’s Day flowers after the romantic day is over or want to commemorate blooms gifted to you on a special date, then you certainly are at the right place. Here are the top 5 ways to ensure that your roses last forever.
The practice of drying roses dates back to when they have been growing. In the Victorian era, most flower arrangements were made of dried flowers when the houses got heated with open fires, which shortened flower life immensely. Continue reading this guide on how to dry your roses and other flowers, so they last forever.
Main drying methods
By using three principal ways, you can dry flowers at home. They are in a microwave, using a desiccant or in the air. You can even opt for the freeze-drying method, though it isn’t that feasible at home. It requires specialized freezers and takes a couple of weeks too. You can even opt to buy preserved rose in glass dome.
Ways to Prepare Flowers for Drying
Dried flowers are completely open blooms that are fragile and may lose their petals once they’re dried. To get the best results, you need roses that haven’t started to decay and whose leaves aren’t falling off.
Do not expose them to sunlight to ensure that roses don’t lose their color during the drying process. Also, if you plan to pick your roses from the garden rather than from a florist, make sure to pick them in the morning when there is no moisture on the petals. Pick only healthy roses to prevent any discoloration or to rot in the drying process. If you want to preserve roses with the stems, remove all leaves as they don’t dry well. Then cut stems to the desired length but not less than six inches.
Air Drying
Air drying is the easiest and the most common method that doesn’t require anything except the flowers—wondering when you should opt for this method. This air-drying method is the best for the just-opened rosebuds that can maintain their shape. When implementing the air-drying method for your roses, always hang them in laundry style with blooms facing the ground as you don’t want gravity working against you. Also, before you hang the flowers, ensure that there is no water is trapped between petals. Dry roses in a warm, dark, dry, place with a good ventilation system to get the best results. Leave them hang in place for 2 -3 weeks. Once your roses have dried, remove them from the string and spray them with the colorless hairspray for protection.
For example, pink roses are the easiest to dry on thin air, but if you want to keep them fresh you should always put them in a not that sunny and little humid place with plenty of natural light, and always keep a lot of water in the jar.
Air Drying in a Vase
If you wish to dry miniature roses or spray roses, then you can air dry them simply by leaving them in a vase. But ensure that you remove the leftover water from the vase to prevent your roses from rotting. In hot climates, water evaporates quickly, so moisture is likely to evaporate quickly, if any on the petals.
Pro Tip: Spray your favorite roses with hairspray. This use of hairspray to keep the rose in mint condition is not that common to preserve any flower. Though it works great if combined with the air-drying method. You can use a can of ordinary hairspray that will work wonders covering the rose petals, stem, and leaves with the liquid. It will effectively hold all the petals firm and prevent them from falling off while hung upside down.
Drying Roses in a Microwave
It’s quite a quick method but is applicable only on flower heads or blooms with a short stem as it has to fit on the turntable. You need to place your flowers on greaseproof paper and set the microwave to the lowest setting. Ensure to keep a check on your roses every 45 -60 seconds as you don’t want them to overcook. Using a desiccant during microwave drying is also recommended to prevent petals from deformation.
Desiccant Drying- Using Silica Gel to Preserve Roses
If you want your roses to look natural, make use of silica gel. Get it online or from nearby craft stores as it works great for sturdy flowers. It works the best for fully open roses.
Place all your roses in a large airtight container and bury them in silica gel while ensuring that every part of the flower is concealed. Seal the container tightly and gently uncover vibrantly preserved flowers in a few days.
Pressing Flowers
Desiring to use your dried flowers for more than flower arranging? Go for the pressed method. Take a heavy book and then simply arrange your roses face down so they don’t overlap on the pages with wax paper.
Close the book, apply some pressure, and leave it untouched for about 2 weeks and even a month. Once your flowers have no texture and have a papery texture, use them to make stationery bookmarks or simply fill photo frames with them to make pretty wall art.
By DIYing dry roses, you can preserve the special memory of your special someone. You can even get custom rose boxes that allow you to enjoy your roses longer. They will even add a romantic touch to your space. They look beautiful and make a lovely keepsake forever. Try drying the next bunch of roses that you receive as a gift or buying yourself!
