I LOVE flowers in my house - even if it is dandelions from my boys. They bring such joy and happiness when I look at them. I want your flowers to do the same for you. Here are 7 tips for extending the vase of your flowers and keeping the happy in your home or office.
Start clean. Make sure you use clean water AND a clean vase. If you have gunk in your vase, it can cause your flowers stems to not take up water correctly. Flowers just like us require water to be happy. If you wouldn't be willing to drink out of your vase, you might want to consider a different vase.
Use flower food. Flower food is specially formulated to promote your flowers health and make them last longer. It typically includes water softeners, pH regulators, water absorption promoters, and nutrients. At our farm, we include flower food packets with all bouquets. You can almost always find them with bouquets that you purchase at a grocery store and even online. If you get a packet with your flowers or have some left over, make sure to put in your vase.
Remember 45 degrees. Before putting flowers in your vase, always recut the stems to promote water update. Cut the stems at a 45 degrees angle to increase the surface area for water absorption. After flowers are cut, they heal over to prevent water loss. You must give them a fresh cut otherwise they won't absorb water as well which will reduce their vase life.
Strip stems. Remove any leaves that will be below the water surface. Plant material that starts to decompose will dirty the water and decrease vase life for your flowers.
Change water every 2 days. Change the water in your vase every 2 days. You can also trim the stems to increase water absorption.
Cull ugly looking blooms. Don't be afraid to pull out stems that are past their prime. Their stems will cause the water to get dirty faster reducing vase life for the other flower. They are also not adding to the beauty of the other flowers when they get old looking.
Avoid bright sunlight. Display your flowers in an area that doesn't receive bright or direct sunlight. This will cause your flowers to wilt and drink more water. It will be harder to keep them hydrated. This also goes for when transporting flowers home from the farm, market or store. Treat your flowers like they are ice cream.
Do you only use a little of the packet that comes with the flowers so that you have some each time you change the water? I have been putting all of it in the vase with water