Hydrangeas can be dried

Q The hydrangeas are beautiful this year. Is there a way to dry hydrangeas to keep them as a centerpiece? A Hydrangeas, and other summer flowers, can be preserved by drying. Pick flowers at the height of their bloom before they begin to fade and at midday, not after a rainfall.Air dry: It's the simple way. Immediately after picking, hang flowers upside down on a line out of direct sunlight. Attics, closets and pantries are good locations; basements, porches, garages and other damp places are not. Divide the flowers into small bunches to avoid crowding or crushing. The stems of the flowers can be tied together with twine, wire, pipe cleaners, rubber bands or anything that will hold them securely yet not break the stems. Time to dry can be a couple of weeks or more depending on the moisture content of the flowers and the ambient humidity. Glycerine: The chemical replaces the water in the plant, making the preserved plant supple and long-lasting. Use two parts water to one part glycerine, making sure the water is lukewarm for better mixing and faster absorption. Where leaves only are used, they should be submerged completely in the solution. Where leaves attached to stems are used, then only the stems are immersed into the solution. It can take two to three weeks for the solution to reach the leaf tips. If the samples appear to wilt after removal from the solution, hang them upside down so the glycerine will migrate to leaf and branch tips.Sand drying: Use very fine, clean, dry and preferably salt-free sand. Sift to remove coarse grains and foreign particles, and rinse with water several times to remove any soil. (Damp sand can be dried in an oven by placing in shallow pans and baking at 250 degrees for 30 minutes.) Place 1 to 2 inches of sand in a container; scoop away a small amount of sand to form a depression on the surface; place the flower head upright in this depression and press the sand in and around the outside of the flower to support it. Next, scoop a little sand into your hand and allow it to trickle in a fine stream around each petal. Start with the outer petals and work inward row by row, allowing the sand to build up equally on all sides of each petal so its position and shape are not altered. Flowers dried this way are fragile, so be careful when removing them from the sand. Store in a strong carton to protect the petals from breaking.Homemade agents: Various mixtures can be made with ingredients found in most kitchens such as 2 cups of Borax, 2 cups of corn meal and 3 tablespoons of noniodized salt. (The salt preserves the color.) After placing the flowers head down in a shoe box lined with wax paper, pour the mixture over them until the heads are covered. Keep checking to see if the flowers are dry, from a few days to a week or more.

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