FLOWER CARE – BOUQUETS, VASES, AND HP BOXES
Posted on 16 September 2020
Getting the gift of an arrangement of flowers is a beautiful thing – whether it be a celebration, a congratulations, even a condolence. Flowers have a way of expressing one’s feelings and intentions to another, in a way that words sometimes cannot. But, how do you make the most of this gift? Taking care of your flowers might seem like a difficult task, but in reality, it doesn’t have to be so. Here are a few tips and tricks we have, that can help your arrangement thrive.
BOUQUETS AND VASE ARRANGEMENTS:
This first part pertains only to bouquets. If you have received a bouquet, the first thing you will need to do is unwrap at least the base of the arrangement. When florists make these arrangements to be delivered, they do something called “wet packing”; a process by which a wet tissue is wrapped with a plastic bag around the base of the stems, in order to keep the flowers from drying out. This needs to be unwrapped and the stems potentially rinsed with room temperature tap water to remove any remaining tissue.
For bouquets and vase arrangements, once you have taken them home or they have been delivered to you, get a pair of scissors (preferably garden scissors), and cut 2-3cm off the bottom of the stems at a diagonal angle. Cutting the stems helps keep the flowers fresh, and this should be done about once a week or when you notice the stems starting to yellow. Cutting at an angle helps to increase the surface area through which the flowers can ‘drink’ water, as opposed to just a straight flat cut.
If the stems become short enough that some leaves start to become submerged under the water, remove these, as they may contain bacterium which may cause an increase in algae growth which is harmful to your flowers.
Keep the flowers in a vase or container with a good amount of room temperature tap water, at least halfway up the stems. Change the water about once every week or two, or when you start seeing a murky discolouration. You may also want to rinse the vase/container out once in a while if there is any build-up of algae. Additionally, keep the arrangements out of direct sunlight, and if there are any blooms which start to die or spoil before the others, remove them to reduce the risk of them affecting the other flowers in the arrangement.
HP BOXES:
Taking care of these arrangements is similar to the previous examples, with just a few slight differences, all of which I will go through down below.
Trimming the stems of the arrangements is much the same. Ensure that you are not taking off too much or too little lengthwise from the stems – taking off too little will have a reduced effect in terms of retaining freshness, and taking off too much will result in having very short-looking arrangements.
Change the water in these arrangements every 2-3 days, and, as above avoid direct sunlight whilst removing any spent or spoiled flowers.
These are, in a nutshell, the only things you will need to ensure your arrangements have a long and healthy lifespan in your home! Flowers bring a special little something to your home, and hopefully with this knowledge on hand, they can continue to do so long after they have passed from the hands of your local florist, into your very knowledgeable hands!
- Hailey Paige Flowers xx
