Drying sunflowers has become a very popular trend in recent times. That’s because they serve so many different purposes. For instance, you can dry the flower for their seeds or petals, make decorations out of them to be placed around your home or just turn them into a simple keepsake. Find out below exactly what it takes to dry your very own sunflowers:
Steps to Drying Sunflowers
Step One: Collect the Petals
- To begin, you want to gather up all the petals from your sunflowers. In particular, you should choose sunflowers with brightly colored petals that are undamaged. Once you do that, start plucking the petals off of the sunflowers one at a time. Here, you can use your fingers. Continue doing this until you’ve collected all the petals you need.
Step Two: Place Your Petals In Between Paper Towels
- Take two sheets of paper towels and lay them down on a microwave-safe plate. From there, arrange the petals on top of the paper towels in a single layer. Then, throw two more sheets of clean paper towels on top of the petals. This step is vital so that any moisture released by the sunflower petals is pulled away from the surface as it’s being microwaved. Also, remember that the petals need to be in a single layer. If you layer them together, they could end up sticking together or breaking apart when you try to separate them at the very end.
Step Three: Microwave the Petals Until They’re Dry
- Put the petals in the microwave on high power for anywhere from 20 to 40 seconds, or until the completely dry out out. After the first 20 seconds, you should check on the sunflower petals, as you don’t want to microwave them for too long. If they still feel damp after those 20 seconds, continue microwaving them in 10 second intervals until they seem dry. You don’t want them to end up becoming crisp, though. Once you’re done microwaving all of your petals, let them sit out on your paper towels for several hours before you start doing anything with them. This will help you preserve them for longer.
