How to Dry Flowers …. In Your Microwave!

Yes, I said it … in the microwave! I promised last week when discussing how to dry flowers traditionally that I would share with you how to dry flowers in your microwave!

First, you must collect plants from your garden, or purchase some from the store. And it is best to condition your flowers before drying them.

By conditioning I mean, place your cut stems in some fresh water for at least a few hours to a day. This allows the plants to open a bit more and recover from the shock of cutting.

Next, cover the bottom of a microwave-safe container with silica gel beads, about 1/2 inch high (for larger flowers use 1-2 inches of silica in the bottom). Otherwise your flowers will dry in the shape of the bottom of the container.

Continue adding more silica beads to cover the flowers. Using the beads will help the flower heads maintain their cupped shape!

Once fully covered, it’s time to microwave!

When heating, leave the container uncovered in the microwave. Select a temperature about the defrost setting, and start experimenting with “cooking times.” Since different flowers dry at different rates, you can start heating at 30 second bursts to determine how much heat is required. Generally I find that it takes anywhere from 2-5 minutes depending on the type of flower. For example, roses are hardier than daisies, and thus prefer more heat.

Also, it may seem like a no brainer, but don’t ever reuse this microwave dish or anything that held the silica again for food.

Be careful and use potholders when removing container from microwaves, and let cool in a safe place.

Once the silica cools, you can carefully remove the flowers from the beads. Use a fine brush to remove the leftover silica and spray with hairspray. The hairspray serves two purposes: It helps hold the flower together and helps it maintain its color! An alternative to hairspray is an acrylic spray.

Now you can use fresh OR your newly dried flowers in arrangements, as gift decorations or any other project you can think of!

And if you missed it, last week I discussed how to dry your flowers the traditional way here!

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How to Dry Flowers

I love flowers so much, that I want to keep them around way past their expiration date. I use a variety of methods to drying my plants, including the traditional drying process, pressing and also microwave drying (for the more delicate blooms.)

First, I assess dryability of flowers. By this I mean, they must be healthy, strong, longer-lasting plants, with their flower heads just beginning to open up. If you attempt to dry a fully mature flower, more likely than not, you will lose precious petals and leaves.

Strawflowers are so perfect for Air Drying!

Your blooms will look best, and hold a richer color if you condition your flowers before you string them up.  To condition your flowers, pick in late morning (if selecting from your own garden), and hydrate them in a vase for a few hours. Once perked up remove any excess foliage and cut stems to desired length (no shorter than 6″).

 Buds are not fully open are ideal as flowers will continue to bloom as they dry.

Hang upside down in bunches, bound by string or rubber bands, out of sunlight in dark dry room/closet with good air circulation. Check in 2-3 weeks to see if fully dry.

Once dry, spray with hairspray, which helps hold everything together & protects against fading, and your dried flowers are ready!

You can use your dried flowers to decorate your home by handing them, arranging them in a vase, or use the leaves and petals for homemade potpourri or some other craft project.

Personally I enjoy arranging my traditional dried flowers in a vase, and displaying them on one of my many shabby dressers, out of direct sunlight of course!

Next week I will show you step-by-step how to dry your flowers in the microwave!

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Campanula, Trees and Eggs … Spring is Here!

I am in love with with the Blue Rose Campanula (Campanula cochlieariifolia ‘Elizabeth Oliver’) … she may be a rare variety but oh so pretty!

I tend to be a garden-geek, and as such you are more than likely to encounter flowers just about everywhere in my little cottage … in table and plate settings … in trees and nests …. just about anywhere you can imagine! I can’t help it, I know my interests aren’t that varied,  I just  love gardening, reading about gardening and being green!

A few years ago my mom’s feisty kitty thought it would be great fun to ‘play’ with her egg tree. Now for those of you who don’t know, my mom is super talented and hand painted little Easter vingettes on hollow eggs and we enjoyed them for years …. until her precocious kitten decided to bat them around the dining room!

Needless to say only 2 survived, but this year my crafty mom made some new ones and now our Easter Tree is full again!

You can visit my mom’s blog where she writes as Seaside CC to see some more of her crafty projects and her watercolor artwork!

Me … I’m more of an earthy kind of gal, who has an uncommon attachment to all things green (check out my boards on pinterest!) and these rare campanula (C. cochleariifolia) flowers are definitely something I am having a love affair with!

For the Easter tree, we used some of my Lilac (Syringa vulgaris) branches to display my mom’s little egg masterpeices!

Check out this Bunny in the Nest!

Our table featured lots of pinks, greens and purples!

And my favorite treat by far were these chocolate covered strawberries! Can you think of  better way to round out the holiday?

If you are interested in growing some Campanula (C. cochleariifolia) yourself, here’s the short list of things to know …

• Hardy from USDA Zones 4-8
• Ideal for rock or container gardens
• Sow in containers in or root perennial basal cuttings in spring
• Susceptible to: slugs, snails, spider mites and aphids

Still loving Campanula (C. cochleariifolia) … wonder how it well it would fare in a terrarium?

I think I just might have to do an experiment! …. I’ll keep you posted on my little terrarium exercise!

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A Little Breath of Pink … ah la Rachel Ashwell

Working on getting ready for the Seacoast Artisans Show in Portsmouth, NH on November 5th, but was sidetracked (which lead to quite a bit of procrastination on my part) by a lovely interview with Rachel Ashwell, whom I adore on the Hello Lovely Inc Blog! And it was all about adding a little pink to your home decor.

So I decided that I would share some pretty new pink things in honor of the not-so-shabby Ms. Ashwell!

Just a little pink sneak peek of what I will have at the show and up in my shop soon as well as some other holiday goodies!

Hope you all can enjoy a little breath of pink in the Fall …

A Flower Mantle … My Version of a Flower Table
       & A Little Botanical Taxonomy

I have a weakness for British Gardening Magazines (Gardens Illustrated, The English Garden, etc.) and over the past few years I’ve seen about 4 or 5 articles depicting flower tables and I’ve been itching to make my own …

Mine happened by mistake.  One day while photographing I kept moving finished pieces over to the mantle, and before I knew it I had almost completely filled my mantle! And I never pass up a great flower photographing opportunity …. so with a little rearranging it looked too pretty not to share!

And seeing all these lovely plants got me thinking about their botanical names and all the great varieties & cultivars that go along with that. And I bet right about now you’re thinking I’ve lost you …

So I thought a review of a little basic Botanical Classification will help when looking to add new plants to your yard!

First things first, is the Common Name. A plant usually has more than one common name, and these will even overlap with other plants that are distinctly different. This can make looking for your favorite plant at the local garden center a bit confusing.

It is so much better to have an idea of the plant’s actual latin name, as these are completely different for every plant. The Genus and Species are what is used most frequently to locate that particular plant that you love so much!

The Genus refers to a group of plants that share similar physical structure(s), and the Species is a smaller subset of that group which can breed (make seeds) together and are less distinctly different than other plants in the genus. In layman’s terms the species are a smaller group of more similar plants, whose ancestors all belong to the same Genus.

Now for the botanical enthusiast are the lesser known further classifications: Cultivar and Variety.

A Botanical Variety refers to a plant of the same Genus and Species which has a naturally occurring variant, and is significantly different from the original species described. Varieties are generally geographically separate from each other (grown in other locations and zones), but reproduce true-to-type plants naturally when brought together.

A Cultivar refers to plants of the same Genus and Species that are produced from careful breeding (imagine a horticulturist collecting pollen from one plant with a brush, and applying that pollen to another plant) and are selected to achieve a particular color or form. Cultivars are cultivated by humans to attain a distinct characteristic(s) that can be reproduced under supervised breeding.

Here’s to hoping this will make it easier for you to find that particular plant that you’ve been secretly coveting in your neighbor’s yard!

P.S.    A FREE set of Botanical Bookmarks will be sent to anyone who can name all the plants on the mantle! Be sure to look very carefully!

Favorite Sign of Autumn … Chinese Lanterns!

Pumpkins, Mums and Scarecrows may be what many people picture when they think of Autumn, but I think of Physalis alkekengi, or you may know them as Chinese Lanterns!

Although a loved species, you must be careful as they can become invasive due to their vigorous rhizomes.  P. alkekengi will perform well as long as it has well-drained soil in a sunny location.  Chinese Lanterns will tolerate a partially sunny spot, but keep on the lookout for rust, caterpillars and leaf spot as they can be susceptible to these common pests and diseases.

These plants make wonderful holiday decorations and dry well. When drying flowers, Chinese Lanterns are best cut as the calyces’ begin to change color to vibrant orange, which usually occurs at the end of summer or in the early fall.

Growing these plants is amazingly easy, Spring is the best time to begin propagating perennial P. alkekengi in containers in the cold frame, or just wait until the frost is gone and  you can sow the seeds in situ (directly into the ground) by mid-spring.  Chinese Lanterns make beautiful borders but remember they can become invasive, so be sure to divide your perennials in mid-spring or grow them in containers.

Fall is such a wonderful time of year, the colors so rich and the food so warm & hearty it is hard not to find beauty in the season.

Happy Autumn!

Freesia Always Freshens Things Up!

I am just in love with these Freesia lactea blossoms!

Freesias have some of the most lovely, sweet scents! I am so sad they don’t grow up here in Maine year-round.  They are native of South Africa, and are grown in hardiness zones 10-11 where the summers are dry and winters are sunny, cool and moist. Freesia are dormant in the heat of the summer, but return in the fall.

Many Freesia cultivars were developed for fresh cut flowers or as potted plants. Freesias are grown from corms, and can be grown in the soil or under glass.  A cool greenhouse will work well for these non-hardy perennials, and  its better to select specially prepared corms if growing outdoors for summer blooms in cooler zones. Many times Freesia must be staked, but when grown in mixed borders the surrounding plants will do a good job of holding up the flower heads!

For all of you lucky ducks who live in warmer climates, plant your Freesia corms 3″ deep and 2-3″ apart in full sun with well-drained, fairly fertile soil in spring and you’ll have some wonderful summer flowers!  And if you are doubly-lucky and live in a frost-free zone, plant your corms in the fall and you’ll have spring blooms!

These purple Freesia alba ‘Blue Haven’ are just as lovely as the white F. lactea, and Bonus they posed pretty nicely for me too!

Living way below hardiness zone 10, I have to be content growing mine indoors …

To grow some pretty freesias under glass, add a little grit to your regular soil-based potting mix, keep moist and grow in shade until it establishes itself.  Then move the pot to a full sun location with good ventilation and water freely.  The ideal temperature for these babies is 55 degree F. Once flower buds appear you can apply a balances liquid fertilizer weekly until after the plant flowers, when you can gradually reduce watering until dry.  Now you can store your Freesia corms for next late summer/fall!

Have a Sweet Day!

Love Always,

Wake Up to a Little Sunshine!

When I wake up in the morning I am so happy, "the day is fresh, there's not mistakes in it" (yet) according to Lucy Maud Montgomery and Anne of Green Gables.

That was one of my favorite books growing up, and still is to this day. I even dressed up as Anne for Halloween when I was about 12 years old – I loved Anne & the books so much; I was so excited!

I still think that saying is true, that when you start the day, you have a clean slate, there are no mistakes … yet! And I love that, especially as I am known to make many, many mistakes.

So when I get ready in the morning, I open the shades and sit at my vanity (another flea market find – just needed a coat of paint!) and get myself ready for another day. I think the sunshine can definitely improve your mood and what a wonderful way to jump-start the day with a good attitude! 

And mum's don't hurt either …

So while I rev myself up for the day, I hope you can find a little sunshine and have a wonderful day!

White on White

I might have mentioned in another post that my decorating style is changing, and while I still love green, I am drawn to more whites – especially white on white. I've been following some lovely blogs including; A Beach Cottage, Dreamy Whites, Urban Farmgirl, Faded Plains, The Grower's Daughter, and some others  which feature homes entirely decorated in whites – and they are gorgeous! 

So in honor of those blogs and all the fluffy snow outside, I attempted my own white on white decor…

 
And of course I found some lovely white mums, rosemary and bay leaves that I just had to take home and use! 

Using my lensbaby (above) – it is my new favorite photography toy.  It gives such beautiful effects.

I just loved this dresser from the moment I saw it. And now I think I love it even more with the white flowers!

Staying warm and enjoying the wintery, snowy glow from outside!

Working in My ‘Studio’ …

I love working in my studio … I feel so creative working in there.

When I decided to paint my studio this salmon color – which my mother & sister insist is more peach than salmon – I was very much in an "I love color" mood. 

Even though my studio is small, this is my favorite room of my house to be in. I'm surrounded by all my favorite things … my books, camera, plants, and lots of pretty, little, thrifted vases & pots! 

And coincidentally, the size of my office is one of my favorite things.  I like small, cozy spaces – they are like a little nest!

While I still very much enjoy my salmon studio, my style is evolving. I've thought about re-painting, but the space is so jam-packed and I don't have the time.

 I'm in the midst of preparing for my first wholesale show in March (yay!), working on a new photography collection and some new product lines. 

Obviously, I cleaned & organized my studio for these photos, but it all fell apart as soon as I started in on my work today!

When I was in Trader Joe's last week (I just love that store!) they had this amazing orchids, Cymbidium Orchids. Trader Joe's always carry fabulous flowers, but I just could not get over the size and price of this one. On my way home with my new orchid in my car I was trying to explain how big it was to my mom, but words didn't do the trick … so I took a quick snapshot when I got it home. 

And while I can't tell you what I'm working on next, I can tell you I am so totally excited about it! As we get closer to the show I'll share little bits of the new photography collection and hint about my new products! I am working on some samples right now. The only thing I will tell you is, these products are functional, pretty and of course have a botanical twist to them!

This orchid, which I nicknamed "Big Mama" in my head (I don't actually talk to my plants – unless they look really, really sad & need a pick-me-up), is going to be part of my upcoming collection and product line.

Check back in for more updates this new project! 

Isn't this plant simply amazing?! I still cannot get over how many blooms it has (and there are still so many yet to open) or the size of it. I adore growing plants and having fresh flowers around – but this one takes the cake!

Everyone have a great weekend!

Happy Friday! 

Love,