Fresh cut flowers are a luxurious addition to our homes, so it’s no wonder we want them to last as long as possible. Here’s some information to help you do just that. 

It goes without saying that you should purchase your flowers from a reputable florist, where you know they have received the best care possible  from the time they were harvested, to the time they arrive  in your home. 

Now,  make certain that your vase is clean…really clean. If it’s not clean enough for you to drink from, it’s not clean enough for your flowers to drink from either! The inside of a flower’s stem looks like a bundle of tiny drinking straws call “Capillaries”. It is their job to suck the water up from the vase, to the maturing blossom. We want to keep those capillaries clean, and un-plugged  at all cost, otherwise, the flowers will die prematurely. 

Use  the Flower Preservative you receive  with your bouquet of flowers. Pour the powder into the vase, then fill your vase with baby bath warm water, being sure that it mixes thoughrly with the water. Flower Preservative, or “flower food“, is a magic concoction, scientifically blended to help your flowers last as long as possible. 

Basically, it has three ingredients: a sugar, a germicide, and a neutraliser. 

The sugar is there to encourage the flower bud to fully mature into a full blossom. The germicide is there to keep various bacteria from growing in the water, and the neutraliser is there to amend the water’s PH level to the optimum level. 

We have all heard the various advice about adding a penny (a neutraliser), or a shot of 7-up, (a sugar), or a drop of bleach, ( a germicide). But the truth is, if you use one of these without the support of the other two, you may actually do more harm than good. 

If you just use the commercially prepared flower food in the correct dosage, as indicated on the packet, you can easily see your flowers will last much longer.

Lab reports consistently show us flowers with preservative last an extra 4-7 days longer in the home, than those kept in plain tap water. 

Quality flowers, quality handling and care procedures, quality flower food…it just may be enough to convince you to keep a fresh flower in your home week after week! 

I know I am addicted to a bud vase by the kitchen sink. Treat yourself - you are worth it!

Quality flowers, Quality handling and care procedures, Quality flower food…it just may be enough to convince you to keep a fresh flower in your home week after week!

I know I am addicted to a bud vase by the kitchen sink. You might just get to be as lucky as me!