Bouquet Care: Helping Cut Flowers Last
Norma Ashby
Flowers are magical. They can change a day, express a feeling, or make you feel successful. They bring a quality to our lives that can spread from day to day. Once you’ve picked through the garden, selected and brought your flowers home, or received them for any occasion, you can use these suggestions to help your flowers last longer.
Basic care: Freshly cut the stem bottoms of all flowers before you put them in water. To keep them closed and fresh for a specific event, place them in a cool, dark place. This will slow the opening of most flowers.
If you want closed blossoms to open quickly, place stems in warm water or in a warm place, like in the sun. If you are working with lilies crack the edges of the petals very carefully or loosen the tip by carefully pulling the petals apart. This sends a signal to the flower to begin opening.
To straighten Stems: Occasionally you’ll get flowers with bent stems, be they tulips, ranunculus or roses. Straighten them by wrapping the stems firmly in newspaper and submerging them in cold water. Droopy flowers can be encouraged to stand up by using the above method or you can stick a pin across the base of the flower bud. This trick changes its ability to drink and helps it stand up again. Another trick is to use florist tape and a stiff twig or wire. Wrap the twig or wire and the stem together with florist tape.
More Useful Stem Treatments:
- Woody stems such as holly, lilac, etc. To encourage water absorption, use a small hammer to beat stem ends so that they open a little. Or, cut through the stem bottom with a flower knife, making a cross at the center of the stem bottom. You can also scrape off some of the outer bark and expose the fresh bark to help water absorption.
- Hollow stems such as larkspur. Fill the stem by turning it upside down and holding a finger over the end as you place it in the vase of water. This can keep the flower fresher since it doesn’t have to work as hard to pull water up the stem.
- Milky stems, like euphorbia. It’s best to avoid milky water in arrangements you want to last a long time. Milky water can shorten the life of other flowers. Or, seal the stem ends by heating with a match or candle before adding to water. This is especially helpful when you are mixing this type of flower or greenery with others.
Important Tools; Clean Vases: Like most efforts, be they creative or serving a specific function, having good tools is important for best results. Working and playing with flowers is no different. To get the best results there are some essentials, like a good pair of comfortable clippers or kitchen scissors, used only for flowers so that they stay sharp and don’t gather unexpected bacteria. Florist tape can also be a life saver in some situations. And, not surprisingly, a clean vase is important. Wash vases with soap and water. If the vase has had dingy, dirty water in it or water that has stayed for awhile or has left ring marks, you should consider soaking the vase overnight with warm water and a tad of bleach.
Help Flower Arrangements Last: Bouquets may need a little tending to. Pick off any petals turning brown, and pull out any flowers that are no longer working in the arrangement. If you’ve had the bouquet for awhile – a few days or a week – you can cut the stems again, change the water to freshen it up and prolong the life of the flowers. It can also help to shorten the stems and move the bouquet to a shorter vase with more support at the neck. Sometimes a smaller opening can add just the right support and create a new look.
The Joys of Flowers: Flower care can come into our lives easily and bring a satisfaction unlike other tasks. Flowers can feel like no effort at all and give us much in return, as they can affectionately change someone’s day or linger in our lives as a reminder that someone is thinking of us or they can spill in from our yards and bathe our homes in joy!