Wednesday, May 3, 2017

If You’re Planning to Give Her Flowers This Mother’s Day, Make Sure She Knows How to Make Them Last!



Everyone loves fresh flowers for their beauty and scent.  Perhaps, you were thinking of surprising that special woman with a bouquet this Mother’s Day to make her smile.  If so, let me share some valuable tips in order for her to enjoy them as long as possible.

fresh flowers in a vase.jpeg
Fresh flowers have a magic about them that always brightens a mood.
Once those fresh flowers are immersed in water, they start growing bacteria. To slow this cycle down, remember to remove lower leaves.

You also need to change the water in the vase daily. The ideal temperature for flowers is just warm, not hot or cold that can shock them. Doing so also will help keep the fresh flowers healthier from contamination due to any plant droppings in the water. 

Another helpful tip is making sure to trim off the immersed stems every other day.  You can cut up to an inch without harming them.

The water isn’t the only place bacteria can linger.  It’s just as important to properly disinfect the vase holding your fresh flowers at least twice a week.  Wash it out with some dish detergent and then rinse in a solution of water with a few drops of bleach.  You will be surprised at how much longer time your flowers will get in their clean home.

To preserve roses, you can drop an aspirin in the water to keep them going.  Tulips appreciate a penny in their water, but what works better are what florists use–-a floral preservative.  You can find a floral preservative at nurseries or your local florist.

Something else that you may not have thought about is where you keep your flowers displayed.  You don’t want them on a table or area to close to where a fruit bowl may be.  The reason this is not a good idea is because when fruit ripens, it discharges ethylene gas that takes a destructive toll on fresh flowers.

Finally, if you get fresh flowers and don’t plan to be around them for a while, you could try storing them in your refrigerator. Then again, you might not have room, you could also try leaving them in a draft-free and cool, dark spot.

Hopefully, this bit of floral care will help you get more days of pleasure from those beautiful fresh flowers that will be arriving than before!