Flowers have a way of saying “I care” or “I love you” better than anything else! With no words, flowers express so much – nature always has a better way to connect to the soul. We get flowers as gifts from the best online flower delivery service but do not know how to take care of them. It’s okay! If you want to retain these beautiful blooms fresh and nice even off the plant, we have some tips and ideas on how to take care of fresh flowers so they stay for longer:
Get a proper vase
Vases are not very common in homes these days simply because they keep going in and out of trend and the tendency of them getting knocked over is quite high. But it will pay to invest in a proper vase to hold your fresh cut flowers and keep them from rotting away sooner. The make should be tough, and it should have decent volume for a good hefty bunch. Check for cracks and leaks and also see if the paint or artwork on the vase dissolves in water – if it does, it can poison the water, and your flowers will wilt easily. Any glass tumbler is NOT a vase.
Change the water regularly
Once you have the vase and plan to put your cut flowers in it, pour clean water and remember to change it every day if you see the water changing colour. This allows for better exchange of oxygen and carbondioxide from the flower stem and the chances of the flowers being fresher for longer are increased. It is a gardener’s secret to use ice cold water before putting the flowers in and adding a couple of flowers retains freshness.
Treat the water before you put it in the vase
The idea is to keep the water clear of bacterial and fungal growth in the vase water in order to maintain freshness, so add a tiny bit of sugar or apple cider vinegar or even a little bleach to inhibit the microbes. It is an old school trick to keep a penny at the bottom of the vase to keep the flowers fresh.
Stemming it
The stems are the only part responsible for water intake for the flowers, so it is advisable that one takes care of them for better freshness of the flowers. It is a simple trick to slit the stem diagonally instead of right across in a straight line so that the extra surface area absorbs more water. Also, keep trimming the stems little by little each day the flowers live in the vase. For the woody stems, trim an inch from the bottom; for milky stems like Poinsettia, sear the lower half an inch or so for better health and turgidity and for hollow stems, fill them with water and plug the opening using your finger and then lower them in the vase so that they will stay upright for longer.
Not cool, not hot
The temperature should not be too much or too low for the freshness – keep it maintained at comfortable and never put the vase in sun. But tropical flowers do better in warmer spots so take note of that.
No extra leaves
Pinch all the extra leaves from the stem especially the ones which are wilting already, droopy, and the ones below the water line to control the bacterial growth.
Flowers bring so much happiness just by being there! The attractive forms and colours can be retained for longer by using these simple and common methods. Keep them brightening up your home and enjoy nature’s beauty!
