Pot Pourri - Drying Petals



Today I have started the process of drying the rose petals of my above shown plant which is relatively easy. This particular rose has no scent which is a pity but it will still if dried properly help bulk out some pot pourri later on in the season and take some of the essential oil that will be added then.

I use kitchen roll to lay the rose petals on, which is initially draped across a tray and then the petals are sorted out petal by petal. I cup the rose from underneath and then drawn all the petals together and then tug gently this should loosen the petals from the stalk and the stamen section of the flower.

I have found this the simplest way of disconnecting the petals from the stem.





I then segregate all the petals out on to the kitchen towel on the tray singly. If you look closely at the rose petals right at the point there is a white "heel" - this is the bit that has been connected to the stem and is often referred to as the white part. If you are frosting or crystallising rose petals this is the bit that must be removed as it is bitter.





I then cover over with kitchen roll and leave somewhere warm for the petals to dry - the kitchen roll acts like blotting paper between the layers of petals. Check after a week to see if they are dry - if they are remove and store in a dry jar until needed.

Comments

  1. I would love to do this - I have the Apothecary rose in my garden which has a wonderful scent but somehow I can't make myself pick the roses and pull the petals off! And yet if I did I would have the scent in winter too.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am a bit crafty I let the rose(s) bloom leave them for a day or two and then when fully out and just starting to go a bit blowsy I segregate the petals as described so I get the beauty and then am saving the petals to scent and pad out the pot pourri

    ReplyDelete
  3. The Apothecary Rose is one on my list but I haven't seen it generally for sale anywhere is it perchance known by another name - would love to find out as from what I have read this is probably one of the best roses to use for crystallising the petals and pot pourri etc.

    xx

    ReplyDelete
  4. The Apothecary's Rose is rosa gallica officinalis, I think I picked mine up at a plant sale but you should be able to get it from one of the big rose nurseries.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks for that Rowan - I will look out for this

    xx

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Hello, thank you for popping by

Popular Posts