How to dry the lantern and the fruit

Drying lantern for decoration

The relatively large ones Chinese lanterns develop from the five sepals of the rather inconspicuous, white flower. The lantern surrounds the berry - which is quite small compared to the Andean berry - and takes it a wonderful bright orange-red color in autumn at. This makes the lantern flower wonderfully suitable for decorative purposes, for example lined up in a lantern chain, in a drying bouquet or simply as a table decoration scattered on a white tablecloth.

Drying lanterns

To dry the lanterns, you should remove the perishable berries inside. Let the lanterns dry slightly and finally cut out the stem and the berry with the help of sharp nail scissors. In order for this to work, the goblet should be dry, but not yet completely dry. Lanterns that are too dry crumble easily. For a dry bouquet, pick the whole plant including the stem and hang it upside down in a dry and dark place. When this is dry, you can continue to use it for dry bouquets.

Make a lantern chain

• Cut out the lanterns as described above.
• Put the lanterns over the small bulbs of a string of lights.
• This should be TÜV-tested and bear the GS mark.
• LED fairy lights are best because they generate little heat.
• Use some glue (craft glue) to ensure a better hold.
• The self-made, autumnal fairy lights are ready.

In addition to the pretty lanterns of the lantern flower, the healthy fruits of the related Andean berries are also ideal for drying. Especially when you have had a plentiful harvest, drying the surplus berries is a good way to preserve them. The easiest way to do this is in a dehydrator, but you can also dry the fruit in your oven. A temperature between 45 and 50 ° C with circulating air is optimal for the process. Due to the high water content, Andean berries take between 20 and 30 hours to dry out completely. The orange-red peel becomes almost translucent on dry fruits, so that the numerous seeds inside you can see. The dried berries are kept cool in a tightly sealable container.

Tips & Tricks

In the fall, crush some of the ripe fruits and just leave them in the garden (cover lightly with soil). The seeds will sprout the following spring.

IJA