1. Water drying
Drying in water might sound like a contradiction in terms but bear with us. With a little patience, your flowers will eventually dry – and will retain more of their fresh-flower colour vibrancy than if left to dry with air alone.
For this technique, pick your flowers when the petals begin to lose their soft suppleness and take on a papery texture (usually about six weeks after they’ve opened).
Cut the stems at an angle and place the flowers in jars, with about four inches of water in the bottom. To ensure the flower heads have plenty of exposure to the air, cut the stems to varying lengths.
The water should evaporate over the course of one to two weeks. If the petals are still not dry when the water has vanished top up with a little more and repeat until the flowers are dry.
2. Air drying
Air-drying is the ideal technique if you want your blooms to take on that faded vintage, dusky hue. The most crucial part of drying hydrangea is choosing the right moment to pick the blossoms from the shrub. Tempting as it might be to pick them at their most lush and vibrant, fresh blooms contain too much water – and will only lead to withered petals if picked too soon. Bide your time and wait for the flowers to dry naturally. You’ll know the time is right when their colours start to fade.
Once cut, strip off the leaves and arrange your flowers in a vase – or for a simple vintage arrangement, tie a bunch of three or four blooms together with ribbon or twine and hang upside down as Dagmar did in her brilliant how-to article. They look particularly pretty suspended by a windowpane in the bedroom or kitchen.
Creative ways to display hydrangea
Here are some innovate ideas for making the most of your hydrangea:
