Our Colorado flower blooming season is winding down. For those of us who would like to “extend” the beauty of the garden throughout the year, drying flowers is an inexpensive way to enjoy garden activities into the winter months while providing an indoor ray of sunshine on those cold, snowy days to come.

Whether you are drying flowers to provide indoor decorations or looking for some way to capture the beauty of your favorite flower, this requires no elaborate equipment or previous experience.

Flowers and other plant materials for drying should be picked close to their prime. Flowers continue to open as they dry, so they should not be fully open when picked. They can be collected anytime during the growing season, from early spring until late fall. Always collect more than is needed, to allow for damage.

Choose as close to perfectly shaped plants as possible. Meager shapes dry as meager shapes. Choose plants free of insect and disease damage, no dew or rain present and stems with sweeping curves that will add character to the arrangement.

When preparing dried arrangements, don’t forget to include interesting materials that can be found in the fall, including seedpods, cones, grain, grasses and berries.

Many plants, can be dried by hanging them upside down in a warm, dry place for several weeks. Flowers best suited to this treatment are the “everlastings.” Some, such as globe amaranth, can be dried in bunches on their natural stems. Others, such as strawflower, should have a wire substituted for stems before drying. Several to consider include baby’s breath, bachelor’s button, bells of Ireland, cattail, globe amaranth, iris, larkspur, lily, poppies, statice, strawflower and yarrow. Best grasses are bristly foxtail, fountain grass, pampas grass, plume grass and most seed-headed varieties.

Steps for air-drying

During collection, be sure to place the flowers in water to prevent wilting. Remove foliage from stems. If stems are weak or become brittle after drying, remove them and wire the flowers.

Group the stems into small bunches and bind with a rubber band or twist tie. The bunches will pull tighter as the stems shrink during drying.

Hang upside down in a warm, dry, dark area such as an attic or closet. Avoid damp rooms or direct sunlight, making sure there is good air circulation.

Allow to hang until thoroughly dried, normally two to three weeks.

Natural stems dried using this process will generally be straight. These can be bent for arranging by submerging the stems in warm water until they have softened, bending them to the desired position and weighting them in that position until they have dried.

In addition to the everlastings that were mentioned, many other plants can be hung to dry. Large flowers, such as peony and hydrangea, are sometimes dried in this way. However, because of their larger size, they should be hung individually rather than in bunches. Experiment and have fun. You have nothing to lose when drying plants.

El Paso County Extension is operating remotely due to COVID-19. Submit gardening questions by email at csumg2@elpasoco.com.