Fresh Cut Flower Care

How best to care for your fresh cut flowers

Everyone loves to receive flowers! To get the longest enjoyment out of them, there are a few simple steps you can take to keep your fresh cut flowers happy.

First, if you’ve received a wrapped bouquet of flowers without a vase, carefully unwrap them and find the packet of flower food that is typically inside. Then take a look at the stem length and decide what kind of vase you will place them in. If your vase is shorter than the flower stems, you can always cut them down a bit to fit. Once you’ve chosen your vase,  fill it nearly to the top- about ½” to 1” below the rim- with room temperature water. You can place about ⅓ of the flower food packet into your vase at this time. Then take a sharp, clean pair of gardening shears or sharp clean kitchen scissors and give them a fresh cut on an angle. You’ll want to take at least 1” off of the stems. Place them immediately in the water. 

For flowers that are already in a vase upon delivery and for your wrapped blooms once you have put them into a vase, change the water and replace with fresh room temperature water every other day. Recutting the stems every other or every third day will also add to the vase life of your flowers. If you have flower food, you can place a little in the vase each time you change the water. Flower food does help keep flowers fresh longer, but the true secret is keeping the water clean and fresh. Fresh water is the best tool for cut flower care!

Of course, you will want to place your flowers wherever you will enjoy them most. Extend the vase life by placing the arrangement out of direct sunlight in a cool area. Keep them away from known heat sources such as registers and stoves. Flowers expire faster when exposed to certain fruits and vegetables. We do not recommend placing them next to the fruit bowl.

It is important to know that some cut flowers simply don’t last as long as others. Don’t be afraid to remove flowers that are unhappy and keep the ones that still look good a little longer. Keep paring down the arrangement, changing water, and re-cutting stems until they have all reached the end of their vase life. You can even switch out single blooms to bud vases. You may even be able to dry some blooms to keep them forever! 

Lastly, when your flowers have given you joy for their intended amount of time, be sure to wash your vase thoroughly with soap and water. Let the vase dry completely before storing it away. A dirty vase will only make your future blooms expire more quickly. 

Part of the joy of receiving fresh cut flowers is their fleeting nature. Enjoying them can be a cathartic and hands-on experience. Their temporary nature also encourages repeat giving which begets more moments of happiness created! When you are ready to share the joy of flowers, we are here for you!

If you have any questions about cut flower care after reading this post, feel free to contact us!