Care and
Preservation of Flowers
Please take a few
moments to review these simple steps to care for your floral arrangement.
Water
When flowers arrive, the most
important thing to do is to get them in water as soon as possible. Use plain,
lukewarm water for most cut flowers, but use cold water for bulb flowers, such
as daffodils, hyacinths, and tulips. (See Stem Care) Once the flowers settle to
room temperature they become very thirsty and will constantly absorb water into
the stem. Roses absorb more water than most other, so pay particular attention
to them. Change the water every 2 days -- don't just top it off. This is the single most effective thing you can do to keep
your flowers looking fresh.
Food
Use the little packets that
come from the florist. When a flower is cut from the mother plant, it is
separated from its life support system. Just like an astronaut without a
temporary life support system -- it's in trouble. Thus, nearly all commercial
floral preservatives contain the basic components of the life support system
for the cut flower: a biocide (explained below), an acidifier, and sugar. Biocides
are chemicals that kill the bacteria, yeasts and fungi that feed on the sap
that seeps from the cut flower stem. It's an amazing sequence of events: You
cut a rose stem and place it in a vase of water. Bacteria start to grow, and
within 3 hours, there are 30 million bacteria in the vase! These bacteria plug
the tiny straw-tubes that conduct water to the flower. As a result, buds fail
to open, necks weaken and bend, and leaves wilt. The acid helps water move up
the stem more easily and the sugar acts as a flower food.
Common item recipe for plant
food:
- Add
one part lemon-lime soda (not diet) to 3 parts water. Then to each quart
of this solution, add 1/4 teaspoon bleach. Thereafter, add 1/4 teaspoon
bleach after each 4 days of use.
- To
1 quart water add 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon sugar, and
1/2 teaspoon bleach.
- Add
2 ounces Listerine mouthwash per gallon of water. Listerine contains sucrose
(food) and a bactericide. Listerine is acidic and is said help water move
up the cut stem.
Stems
Re-cutting the stems of the
flowers will also prolong their life. You should use a sharp knife or pruning
shears, but never something dull, it will damage the
stem and lead to a shortened life. Cut the stem on a slant between 1 and 2
inches from the bottom and remove any leaves that will be submerged in the
vase. The flower stem is filled with cells that work like a bundle of soda
straws. As long as the bottoms of the straws are submerged, you can draw water
up through them. But pull the straws out of the glass while sucking on them and
all you get is air. Flowers do the same thing. Their demand for water is
continuous, even when they're cut away from the mother plant. The difference is
that cells in the stem have tiny screens that allow water to pass, but not air.
So, when the flower stem is cut, a small air bubble forms at the end of the
stem and is trapped. This acts like a barrier and prevents more water from
getting up the stem -- even if you replace the stem in water.
Location
Keep flowers in a cool place out of
direct sunlight and away from any heat source such as vents or televisions.
Keep flowers away from fans to avoid dehydration. Keep fruit and cigarette
smoke away from flowers as they give off gases that are harmful and reduce the
life span of your arrangements.
Following these suggestions
will improve the life and length of time that you have to enjoy the flowers and
enable you to get maximum value from your arrangements.
