Dried Flowers: Tansy

Tansy is native to Eurasia, however it is found in most all parts of mainland Europe. Tansy was once considered a medicinal herb, but later it was its flower that caused it to be considered a necessity for English gardens.

Tansy, like yarrow is great for the punch of golden yellow to bring up the overall color value. Harvest tansy when at the peak of its color, and before any tinges of brown appear. Strip the leaves off the stem by running your forefinger and thumb down the stems. Doing so eliminates the mess caused by extremely brittle leaves after they dry. Position rows of three flowers followed by three more just below the first row. Continue stacking layers of three flowers until you have a dozen, then secure with a rubber band. Hang upside down to dry.

When arranging dried flowers it is often most effective to group them in clusters of a single variety. It is more dramatic than using single stems in a polka dot affect, and focuses attention on the individual varieties, rather than a mass of undistinguishable color and texture.