Plant Talk

Dried Arrangement Hosts the Surprise of a Little Visitor...

I have no idea how long this thumbnail-sized snail has been hanging out on this arrangement in my living room...

The bouquet of grasses and artichokes has dried, changed in texture and color, but held its looks all the weeks since it debuted here on the blog in early October....and it must have played host and offered camouflage for a visiting snail all this time.

I don't think he crawled through the French doors from the deck, across the carpet, scaled the table and then the arrangement....he must have come in on the artichokes or the miscanthus and been hanging out here with us for weeks....

I happened to have on my bifocals when I was adding the arum berries I scavenged out in the alley....and spotted our visitor.  He's welcome to stay, although I'm puzzled as to why he isn't as dessicated as the foliage he's chosen for a home...

 

Hydrangea Harvest

Now is the moment to cut mophead hydrangea heads to bring indoors before the rains start in tomorrow. The tiny frogs were singing in the garden this morning, the sun slanting through the thick mist, a perfect autumn day to harvest hydrangeas.

Nature's your ally in preserving hydrangea blossoms, for most have already dried on the plant to a leathery consistency ideal for preserving. Simply snip a decent length stem (cut to a pair of next year's developing buds ), strip off the lower leaves or even all the leaves, and stick the hydrangeas into a roomy vase (don't crowd them) with a couple of inches of water in the bottom. The water will slowly evaporate, leaving the hydrangeas beautifully dried for fall or even holiday (sorry to mention that!) arrangements.....

A pile of just-cut hydrangeas, headed for the vase...

Fall chill mellows the colors to a range of gorgeous shades - and these are the simplest to grow, basic, old-fashioned mopheads (Hydrangea macrophylla)

 

How to Dry Hydrangeas

Every year about this time I get questions on how to dry hydrangeas....and no wonder, for their fat blossom clusters dry beautifully for wreaths, or just for a big vase of flowers once the garden has gone out of bloom. I've even been known to spray paint them with glitter or gold paint for the holidays...although they mellow to such lovely shades of plum, lavender and chartreuse the glitz really isn't necessary.

There are many ways to preserve their blossoms, but why not go the easy route? The trick is to wait until the blossoms dry part way on the bush; fresh blossoms don't dry well. Don't be too eager to pick them, especially after that biblical rain over the weekend. Hydrangea flowers, no matter which type, are ready to be dried when they've already turned a bit leathery on the bush.

I don't bother with powders or preservatives, nor do I hang them upside down. Just simply stick the cut stems into a vase with an inch or two of water, and let it evaporate. Don't crowd the heads, give them room for air to circulate. This method couldn't be simpler, and you get to enjoy the hydrangeas while they're drying.

You can see how these just-picked mopheads already look a bit leathery - just right for drying. That's Bridget the Wheaten Terrier looking on from her perch on the couch....

These are 'Annabelle' hydrangeas, just picked for drying...