Hydrangeas are beautiful shrubs with traditional charm, but they fit seamlessly into modern gardens. Perhaps the best thing about hydrangeas is that you can enjoy your lovely flowers indefinitely. This is a way to dry out the hydrangeas and maintain their colour.
With so many varieties, colors, and even flower shapes, you can easily find the hydrangea that suits your garden (as long as you’re lucky enough to have the right climate, of course!). You can enjoy it both inside and outside the plants!
The problem that many people have with hydrangeas is getting limp before they dry out. Hydrangeas tend to lean towards drama, but in reality, they are very easy to both hydrate and dry out if you know how to do it.
Tip: You’re not going to hang them upside down.
This is a simple method I use to dry hydrangea flowers and maintain their hue.
Dried hydrangea colour
Of course, it does not retain the same vibrant colours that the plants have while growing in the garden. The colors that can be achieved with dried hydrangeas are like muted sets of green, gray, blue, pink and purple, which look beautiful when displayed together.
Another thing to note is that the climate and temperature in which hydrangea shrubs grow affects how much color is retained in dry flowers. It’s not a perfect system, but ideally you’re looking for healthy plants grown in the right conditions. You can read more about it in my guide to my Essential Guide.
Did you know that you can easily change Hydranji flowers from pink to blue (or vice versa). Here’s how to change the color of your hydrangea:
Time to cut hydrangeas to dry out
Mother Nature and Plant Care aside, the timing when you cut flowers is the most important factor you can control. If you leave the head of the Gildangea and dry them on shrubs, they can lose all the colour. If you make the bloom too early, the petals will wilt rather than keeping the shape and drying it.
To retain most colour, the flowers must first be partially dried on the shrub. Depending on when the plant blooms, you should start checking flowers midway through flowering time.
The colours fade, but they still retain most of their shape and begin to draw on the vibe of the paper. Try to bloom hydrangeas when there are still remaining colours.
How to dry hydrangea flowers
Remove all leaves from the stem (or at least the part of the stem that sinks), and place the flowers in a vase with 1-2 inches of water.
Place the vase in a cool area away from direct sunlight. Water in a vase helps slow the drying process. Blooms are better preserved by slow migration. Once the water is gone, it will dry completely and last indefinitely.
You can touch the stored hydrangea heads to see how dry they are. They should feel the paper.
What to do with dried hydrangeas?
Dried hydrangea flowers are very delicate, so it is often better to create a craft or dried flower arrangement before drying. That’s exactly what I did with this hydrangea wreath. I made a wreath of partially dried flowers and allowed the drying process to finish on the front door! Learn how to make a wreath here.
I love using dried hydrangea flowers in all kinds of crafts, including this dried flower arrangement. If you don’t have a large stem, you can use bamboo skewers and florist tape to extend and add dried hydrangea flower stems.
FAQ on how to dry hydrangeas
Before drying the hydrangea flowers, they should be hydrated as much as possible. After cutting them from the shrub, immediately put them in water.
Once inside, cut the stems again and this time put them in boiling water. Make sure the steam escapes. In this case, boiling water is very useful for giving the stems water.
Hydrangeas can also be drunk through petals, so people soak the flowers in bowls of water. This method works well with fresh hydrangeas, but not with already partially dry flowers.
Once it’s completely dry, you can spray hairspray on the dried flowers. Make sure it’s cheap and clear… don’t waste good stuff. This is not so delicate as it helps to create a protective layer on top of the petals.
Hydrangeas are very delicate when they dry. It is recommended to arrange the flowers little by little before they dry out. As mentioned above, spray with hairspray to keep it away from heat and sunlight, extending the lifespan of dry hydrangea flowers.
Other posts about hydrangea
With a city girl who learned to garden, it changed everything. Author, artist, master gardener. A better life through plants.
