Pansies are always a sure sign that spring is coming! They are available in such a beautiful array of colors – they just look happy! I like to mix them with Johnny Jump Ups (also called violas or wild pansies). I plant them in big pots by our front door, and when it warms up and it is safe to plant geraniums, I move the pansies to the shaded back yard.
This year I decided to use a microwave flower press to dry some of them. The one I used is called Microfleur, and it is available from Amazon in two different sizes. Traditionally you would pick them flowers and put them in book or flower press and it would take several months for the flowers to dry out. With this, you can press the flowers in just a few minutes.
The microwave press comes with the platens, pads, fabric sheets and clips. You place a pad and fabric sheet on top of the platen, and place the flowers upside down on the fabric sheet.
You have to experiment with drying times in your microwave. I dried these for 1 minute on high, checked them, and then added 1 more minute. Different flowers with different textures and amounts of moisture vary greatly in the time required for them to dry. After they are dried they will feel like tissue paper. I place them between pieces of white paper and cover with a couple heavy books until I am ready to use them. This removes any moisture that might still be in the flowers and keeps them flat.
The microwave flower press can be used on your garden flowers all summer long. Enjoy!
