How to Keep Cut Flowers Fresh: 7 Pro Tips

Flowers are the perfect gift idea to tell someone you care. But like any plant that is cut off from its roots, it’s living on borrowed time. Unlike Venus ET Fleur®’s Eternity® Roses that last a whole year, regular flowers need additional care to ensure that they last as long as possible after being cut.

This is a necessity if you’re planning on cutting flowers for special events like weddings, graduations, and the like. But regardless of their purpose, you want your display to look as healthy as possible for the longest amount of time. 

To help you achieve this, we’ve compiled excellent tips on keeping your cut flowers fresh. The next time you plan on giving flowers to surprise someone, employ these pro tips to get the most out of your gift. 

Care Matters

How you care for your flowers goes a long way in adding to their life cycle after being cut. Obviously, healthier flowers will last much longer than weak, withered flowers. 

Furthermore, proper care when cutting your flowers will aid in extending their longevity. So before we move on to the pro tips, let’s explore some ways you can breathe more life into your flowers.

Cutting the Stems

Failure to cut the stems is one of the biggest mistakes made after getting gifted with flowers. The goal here is to remove anywhere between one and two inches of stem from the bottom. 

To do this, take a good, sharp pair of curved shears and cut the stem at a 45-degree angle. Why is this important? Cutting at an angle lets more water into the stem after putting the flowers into a vase or other container.

If the stems’ bottoms are flat, they will sit evenly on the bottom of the vase. This greatly reduces any water intake, ultimately resulting in faster death of the flower.

Another secondary mistake people make is not maintaining their cuts. Although they may initially cut the stems properly, they often fail to trim them every other day or so. 

Pruning

It’s also important for you to prune away any leaves that are visible below the water’s line. This is a much-needed course of action that goes a long way in preventing the growth of harmful bacteria in the flower.

Flowers such as roses have special petals that are designed to guard the flower. By pruning these petals, the flower will have the ability to open fully and present its beauty for display.

Remember to follow up over the next several days by pruning any dead leaves or petals. This is another preventative measure that helps fight off the bacteria that can damage your lovely flowers.

Watering

Everyone knows that flowers need to be watered, whether they are cut or not. However, it is important to know how to water properly to ensure lasting beauty. 

When watering your freshly cut flowers, make sure that you use warm water that is room temperature. It’s also a good idea to add some hearty plant food, as this will extend the life of the cut flowers and make them last much longer.

Don’t just dump in the flower food. First, you want to mix it into the water so that it is evenly dispersed in the vase. And speaking of vases, always make sure to rinse out the vase or container you will use with your cut flowers.

Leaving dust or dirt can cause harm to your flowers and shorten their lifespan after they are put into the vase. 

After your flowers have been sitting in the vase for a few days, it’s crucial that you empty out the old water and add in fresh, clean water. Furthermore, you want to make sure that you have plenty of flower food handy, as you will need to re-add this every time you change out the water.

Do this about every couple of days, and you will enjoy healthier long-lasting flowers.

Additional Care

Cut flowers tend to last much longer if they are kept in a room that is relatively cool. Don’t display your flowers near a window or in an area that they will receive direct sunlight. 

This is because heat can be very damaging to the cut flowers, resulting in a shorter lifetime. Any other locations in your home that could potentially let off heat should be avoided.

This includes leaving a vase near appliances, vents, windows, or fans. These can lead to the flower becoming dehydrated and dying.

And believe it or not, fruit can be a big issue for flowers. Fruit that is in the process of ripening can damage nearby flowers. This is because the fruit releases small particles of a gas that can harm your flowers and ruin their beauty.

Pro Tips

Over the centuries, people have continually tried new things to extend the lifespan of freshly cut flowers. By following these pro tips that have been discovered over the years, you can enjoy fuller, healthier, and prettier cut flowers.

Sugar and Apple Cider Vinegar

Simply mix in two tablespoons sugar and two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar before you put your cut flowers into a vase. How does this work?

The vinegar serves as an antibacterial agent, and the sugar works like extra food for the flower. You may want to try this as a last-ditch effort if you don’t have the items found in the other tips, as we found this tip yield the least amount of extra life.

Bleach

You’re probably thinking, “Bleach? Really?” But it’s true, as bleach will indeed help to prolong the life of your cut flowers. Simply add a ¼ of a teaspoon into your vase after putting in your flowers and water.

This small amount serves as a preventative measure that helps fight off harmful bacteria. Your water will look clearer longer, too.

Aspirin

In what is perhaps the most popular and well-known tip in our guide, adding Aspirin is one of the best things you can do to prolong the life of your flowers. It can be a bit difficult to employ, but the hard work is well worth the effort.

After adding in water and your flowers into a vase, mix in a crushed-up Aspirin to enjoy fresher flowers for several days longer than usual. But how does the Aspirin actually help the flower?

The Aspirin lowers the water’s pH levels, so your flowers have an easier time taking in water, resulting in full and vibrant flowers.

Pennies

This is another handy tip that’s been passed down from generation to generation. The copper of the penny works as an acidifier that prevents damaging bacteria from developing on and in your flowers. 

We noticed that our blooms were full of life and more visible after adding a penny to our water. Don’t add more than one penny, or you could potentially cause your flowers to open up too much. While they will certainly look stunning, it will leave them wilting far too soon.

Soda

A ¼ of a cup of soda serves as food for your flowers, just like sugar. The truth is, soda is loaded with sugar, so it works wonders in maintaining your cut flowers’ beauty and appeal.

During our testing, we noticed that our flowers were hanging around much longer than our flowers without any additives. Furthermore, the blooms were vibrant and full, providing us with a display as beautiful as the day we cut them.

Flower Food

As we already mentioned, flower food makes a big difference in the overall life of your cut flowers. Make sure to add more flower food every time you change out your water to enjoy healthier, long-lasting flowers.

Cooling

Cooling your cut flowers in the fridge is a great way to keep them looking fresher longer. To get the most out of your arrangement, place them in the fridge right before you go to bed for the night.

Allow them to chill out overnight, and you should notice that your flowers stick around for a few more days. This is effective in that the cool temperatures prevent aging in the flowers. 

We noticed that our arrangements lasted much longer when we regularly placed our flowers in the fridge each night, although they didn’t last nearly as long as a Le Petit Blush Suede Arrangement.

Conclusion

When you buy our long-lasting Eternity Roses, we employ a special technique that allows our flowers to last as long as a year. We understand the importance of giving flowers that last as long as possible. 

While these tips are sure to extend the life of your cut flowers, nothing comes close to our beautiful gifts. Whether it’s our Classic Bundle Set or a Small Lé Plein, you can trust our arrangements to last for a whole year, giving a gift of luxury and beauty day after day.

There’s no need to try special tricks to get our Eternity Roses to stay vibrant and full. They will maintain their stunning appearance without compromising their beauty.

Source-

https://www.womansday.com/home/how-to/a4695/how-to-make-fresh-flowers-last-longer-103671/

https://homeguides.sfgate.com/aspirin-affect-life-cut-flowers-vases-64662.html

https://gardenerspath.com/how-to/beginners/make-flower-food/