How to Extend the Life of a Flower Bouquet?

If someone gave you (or you gave) fresh flowers and you want the bouquet to last long, change the water frequently and trim the stems. Occasionally remove wilted petals and leaves. What other nuances there are and how to care for each flower to keep the bouquet looking beautiful for a long time, read in our article.

Tulips

These flowers need very little water. Wash the vase with soap and pour ice-cold water into the bottom. Trim the stems carefully on a cutting board with a sharp knife in the same motion as you cut green onions. Place the bouquet in the vase, ensuring each stem touches the water. Add ice-cold water to the vase daily or several times a day to keep the stem edges submerged in water.

Hyacinths

These spring flowers have thicker stems than tulips, which means they are even more prone to rotting. Therefore, the same rules apply: clean vase, ice-cold water at the bottom, straight cut like with onions, add water daily. If you notice that the stems have softened, refresh the cut. For this, buy hyacinths with the longest stems possible. These plants look great even with roots! Therefore, it's not necessary to buy cut ones. Bulbs can be planted when the ground warms up, on a dacha.

Narcissus

It's better not to mix these flowers with others in a bouquet—give narcissus as a bunch just like that, without anything else. When cut, they release sap into the water that is toxic to other flowers. Therefore, bouquets with narcissus wilt quickly. But individual flowers will last well if you change the water more often and trim the stems.

Interesting Fact

Cut flowers do not like to be near fruits. Do not place vases with flowers and fruits next to each other, no matter how beautiful it looks on the table. The reason is that many fruits release ethylene into the air, which causes fresh flowers to wilt quickly. This includes bananas, pears, peaches, and apples. And for some reason tomatoes too.

Hydrangeas

These flowers love water, so they should be bathed in a tub more often. Submerge the plants in water for six hours or better yet, overnight. Otherwise, they will wilt by the next day. Like narcissus, hydrangeas do not get along well with other flowers.

Roses

Contrary to popular belief, it is not recommended to submerge them in water. Instead, prepare a sharp pruner to trim the stem at a very acute angle, almost parallel to the surface, before placing them in the vase. Refresh the cut more often; ideally, every day.

Interesting Fact

To make a bouquet last longer, add a shot of vodka, vinegar, potassium permanganate solution, or throw in an aspirin tablet into the water. This will clean the water. But it's better to add special fertilizers for cut flowers.

Alstromerias

Just like roses, these flowers (and all plants with hard stems in general: matthiola, lisianthus, eustoma) should be trimmed at an angle with a very sharp knife or pruner.

Lilac

First of all, cutting this plant is environmentally harmful, and by buying lilac, you support its illegal logging. But if someone gave you branches of this tree, we recommend making a diagonal cut while scraping off about two to three centimeters of bark. This way, you at least extend the life of the flowers.

Interesting Fact

Flowers with white petals fear water. In general, any buds should not be soaked. However, greenery must be moistened: the more humid the leafy part of the bouquet, the more comfortable the flowers are. Cover buds and thorns and mist the leaves from a spray bottle.