Ahh February, the season of love. With all the chocolate, cards, romantic dinners and confessions of love, there are sure to be beautiful bouquets of flowers. Whether it is a dozen red roses or an exotic mix of your personal favorites, there is one thing we all want those cut flowers to do, and that is last! Avoid these common mistakes so that when your sweetie brings home that stunning bouquet this Valentine’s Day, you don’t end up having to toss them in the garbage in just a few short days. After all he or she will surely have put a lot of time, money and thought into picking out the perfect flowers for you.
* Use a clean vase. Any vase that has been previously used may still be harboring harmful bacteria that are dangerous to your precious blooms. Use a little household bleach to thoroughly clean a vase and kill any potential bacteria.
* Always use clean, sharp tools (never scissors) to cut stems. Kitchen scissors were not designed to cut the delicate stems of flowers and will damage them. Be sure to remove 1/2-1" of stem from store-bought cut flowers and cut at a 45 degree angle (allows the flowers to stand on point and take in more water).
* Don't leave stems out of water too long. Make sure to have a vase ready with lukewarm water to put those flowers in immediately after cutting. Leaving flowers out of water too long creates potential air bubbles in the stems.
* Remove any foliage below the waterline. Foliage touching water will start to breakdown and decay and ultimately grow
* Add a flower preservative. This provides the flowers with a source of food and reduces the growth of bacteria.
* Keep cool and dry and out of direct sunlight. Flowers will last longer! If possible, store flowers in the refrigerator at night.
* Re-cut stems, change water and add more preservative every third day.
Want to make your own flower preservative? It's easy!
Add 1 teaspoon of sugar, 1 teaspoon of household bleach and a squeeze of lemon or lime to 1 quart of lukewarm water. Mix, mix, mix and that's it! Insert flowers and watch how long they last!
Megan DiPerriMegan DiPerri is a graduate of the University of Maine where she obtained a B.S. in Landscape Horticulture with a focus in business and design. A true plant nerd at heart and secret tree-hugger by night, Megan is dedicated and passionate about the environment. She is always looking to educate others on how going “green” is not only beneficial to the world around us, it’s the new wave of the future.
Her Green Living insights, "Sage Garden," will be featured regularly in future issues of Aetherial Living.
If you enjoy this article, or would like to know more about Megan, please drop her a comment at megan@aetheriaspa.com
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