I am wanting to make potpouri for Christmas, but I am kind of short on available flowers to dry.
Can I dry my Brug blooms in the oven?
I am leaning toward no, I assume.
Can you dry Brug blooms in the oven for potpouri use?
would think a dehydrator might be better..... would like to know what others think as well...
I do not have a dehydrator, and do not have the funds right now to get one.
I have heard that Brug leaves are poisonous to animals.
I want to make sure attempting to dry the blooms will not put off some crazy poisonous fumes! :(
I looked up recipes for potpourri and the recommendation is that no toxic substances be used. Brug flowers are also toxic so you might reconsider using them. If you want to try them, I suggest you dry them separately mainly because I believe they lose their color when dry. You would have to dry a few to see if they retain any fragrance.
Some people are very sensitive to the toxic chemicals in Brugs. So its difficult to say whether drying some Brug flowers in the oven would affect you. Some of these chemicals are volatile and the heat from the oven would release them into the air. Try air drying them or dry in a well ventilated room.
Personally, I would find non-toxic blooms.
I've dried many flowers, but have never even considered drying a Brug bloom....and why is that? Now I want to so badly!! The toxins are a concern though. I would also recommend a method of drying that doesn't use heat...and I don't even know aobut a dehydrator. I would air dry them....OR there is a cat litter you can get that basically works like a silica gel. The kitty litter is not the regular clay type litter, it is a "crystal" type litter. You simply bury the blooms in it and wait...checking on them every so often. There is a method with the kitty litter where folks put them in the microwave, but I would avoid that.
For air drying I always hung my flowers upside down after inserting some floral wire to hold the blooms straight (or however I wanted it. You can insert the floral wire into the base of the bloom where it is thick. If you use a long enough piece of wire you can swirl it around the stem of the flower and then make a hook at the end....hang the hook on a coat hanger. Hang your hangers of upside down blooms in a dark, cool closet where they will not be disturb. Check them to make sure they are drying well and not molding.
My other concern is that drying the blooms may increase the concentration of the toxins in the blooms...and even stems. However, if you are careful in how you handle them I think you'll be ok...I would wear glvoes when working with them. Any dust created from breaking the dried blooms/petals apart may release toxins, so I'd wear a mask when doing that....HOWEVER I doubt that once they done being messed with (made into potpouri and left to sit on a shelf undistrubed) that they would hurt anyone.
Maybe try it for just yourself this time...and once your friends and family get a whiff of it you can offer it to them explaining your concerns...see if they think it's worth it.
...and if you're looking for something to add to your potpouri to replace the Brug blooms what I like to do is check out the floral arrangements at wal-mart. They are often very cheap but unbelievably nice...you can also find them on clearance many times. These work well for "fillers" if you run out in the middle of a project ;)
good luck...and if you decide to try this please let us all know how it works out.
Okay, thank you guys.
I was against oven drying them, but I thought I would get expert opinions.
Andy, Makshi's Son :)