Those beautiful hydrangea blooms will last much longer if you dry and preserve them. There are three popular methods for drying hydrangeas. Choose the one that fits your needs depending on how much time you want to spend on the project, and the results you are after.
Fermentation was the original way to preserve the harvest, and it’s very easy, said Cat Swenson, the fermenter-in-chief and managing partner of Great Ferments. It predates canning and pickling, and is even more fool-proof than those. People have been fermenting foods for 7,000 years under some very unsanitary conditions, she said with a laugh, and fermentation can preserve food for longer than you ever thought possible. (Look below to see Cat demonstrate her process to Allen. Or click here.)