How to Dry Flowers in the Microwave

How to Dry Flowers in the Microwave

The use of dried flowers in floral arrangements and crafts is swiftly becoming trendy nowadays. Indeed, flower preservation is not only a fun and ever dynamic hobby it can also be a profitable business.

When you talk about dried flowers, what immediately comes to mind as regards the drying process is the popular air drying technique (which utilizes humidity levels to extract moisture from flowers) or the traditional hang and dry technique (this takes advantage of storing plant material in a dark and cool enclosure since darkness contributes to the retention of the color of plant material).

However, there’s another way of coming up with dried flowers. No, I’m not technically talking about purchasing dried flowers from virtual and local flower shops. And no, I’m also not talking about putting plant material between the pages of a book and keeping it that way for 2-4 weeks. I’m talking about drying flowers in the microwave using microwave-safe plates.

How do you exactly get dried flowers from a microwave? Here’s a sneak peak on the process:

• Prepare this stack from the bottom up: microwave-safe plate, doubled paper towel, flowers delicately laid out, doubled paper towel, microwave-safe plate.

• Depending on the flower, heat this stack on high in the microwave for 40 seconds (delicate petals take an utmost 20 seconds before they’re dried whereas ferns consume 50 seconds for the drying process). Ensure that the flowers are dry, not crisp. If they are still damp, put them back in the microwave for 10 seconds.

• Dry the plates and switch paper towels between each batch. This is because paper towels can soak up the moisture, thus the plates get wet. To lessen consumption of paper towels, let the paper towels sit out for a few minutes to dry.

• It’s a good idea to have the flowers rested on a paper towel for a few hours prior to using them in your craft, floral arrangement, etc. Microwave dried flowers last longer this way.

The microwave method of preparing dried flowers may not work on all flowers. Delicate petals like the California poppy or the anemone can turn brown if dried for more than 20 seconds. Pansies are perfect for microwave drying, but subjecting oxalis to this method is a major no-no.