Make Your Flower Bouquets Last Longer

The wilting of the flowers in a beautiful bouquet is really an extremely depressing sight. You can, however, make your flower bouquets last longer if you take care to follow these simple guidelines:

Check the water level in the container once you bring the flowers in the house. Remember that this includes any flowers that were delivered. Try to cut garden flowers early in the morning because flowers cut on a hot day are not likely to last as long because the sun will have drawn moisture away from the petals by then. The most suitable temperature for flowers varies between 40ºF and 50ºF. They will last long if you keep them in your fridge overnight. If they do not get placed in your fridge, try to place them on the floor in the coolest room in your house at night. Remove all leaves from the part of the stem that lies under water. You can use a vegetable brush to clean the stems; this method also keeps the water cleaner.

The correct preparation of stems makes flowers last longer. For properly preparing stems, cut about one-half inch off the end of the stem at about a 45-degree angle. Use only sharp scissors to cut the stems because dull scissors can crush the stem. It is better to cut the stems underwater. It stops air from getting into the veins in the stem of your flower. Split all stems about one-half inch from the bottom with a knife or crush the bottom of the stem with a mallet. Then place the stems in deep water for a few hours and then move them into shallower water.

In order to prevent any airlock from developing in tulips and hellebores and stop water in the stem from getting to the flower, pierce through the stem at intervals with a needle. Change the water and mist the flowers with water on a daily basis. A tablespoon of bleach per quart of water will keep the water cleaner and kill any stench from the water. To make a bouquet look beautiful in glass vases, just add a few drops of food coloring to the water. A teaspoon of sugar can be added to the water to help renew flowers. You should keep the flowers out of direct sun and away from heat and drafts. Mind you, even a fan can cause your flowers to wilt quicker.

For fixing or stabilizing any broken or drooping stems, you can use a straw. To prevent tulips from flopping over, you should wrap them tightly in wet newspaper and then place them in about two to three inches of water for about two hours. Push small pins through the stems just below the flower heads and they will stay straight. Another very important point is to remove any dying flowers as soon as possible. Dying flowers emit ethylene gas; if you do not remove them, they will cause the other, healthy flowers to die.

With these simple steps, your flower bouquets will stay beautiful for days or perhaps weeks longer.