Whether they’re from your garden or from the florist, make your blooms last longer with some smart tricks and tips.
Few things are more cheering than fresh flowers. And you can enjoy those beautiful blooms a little longer by following a few easy practices.
Note that flowers cut from the garden usually last 3 to 5 five days. Flowers from the florist usually actually last longer. They may be less fresh, but florists only sell the types of flowers that last a long time and then condition them so that they will last a week or more in the vase.
- Pay attention to what flowers last longest in the vase. Open daylily buds last just one day. Lilacs are wonderful, fragrant cut flowers but seldom last for more than 3 days. Asiatic lilies, however, will often last a week or more.
- Cut flowers when they are well-hydrated but not wet. This usually means cutting them in the morning, after the dew dries. (If they’re wet, they’re a mess to deal with.) Or cut them in the evening, as the sun starts to set and they recover from the heat of the day, if needed.
- Strip off lower leaves. Use your fingers to strip or pull off any leaves that would be below the water line. The rotting leaves contribute to the bacteria build-up.
- Cover as much of the stems as possible with water. The deeper the vase and the longer the flower stems, the better they’ll be able to absorb the water. This is especially important with hydrangeas. Also check the vase daily to top off the vase as needed with more water.
- Use a floral preservative. You can buy this in liquid or powdered form at crafts stores and florists’ shops. Or add a teaspoon of sugar and a teaspoon of lemon juice (bottled is cheapest) to the water to feed the flowers and to acidify it to reduce bacterial growth.
- Change the water daily. Otherwise bacteria builds up (evidenced by cloudy water and that yucky smell) and reduces the flowers’ ability to take up water.
- Keep it as dim and cool as is reasonable. Granted, if you want to put the flowers in the middle of your warm, sunny kitchen table, do it. But the more time cut flowers spend in a cool, not-bright environment (think fridge), the better.
- Trim the bottoms of the stems every two or three days. Pull the flowers out in a bunch and trim off the bottoms with garden shears or scissors. It opens fresh pores in the stems so the plants can better soak up the water.
- As flowers fade, just pinch them off or pull them out. You can still enjoy the remaining flowers that are fresh. Put them in a new, smaller vase if necessary.
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