How do you care for fresh cut flowers?

Question

I got roses yesterday and i was wondering what is the best way to care for them so they last a bit longer?

Answer 1

When it comes to cut flowers there's a lot of good advice and a lot of wives' tales floating around. I am a Plant Pathologist and have been the quality control manager of a flower importing company for over 13 years. This is what you need to do and why:

1- Buy flowers at a reputable source, don't buy them in a street corner or they will likely be old, stressed flowers.

2- Process them as soon as you bring them home, don't leave them in the car or sitting on the counter for hours.

3- Remove any brown or bruised petals; if there are any brown mushy spots it is most likely Botrytis, which is a fungus that will rot the flower. However if it is removed when the spot is still small your flowers will be ok.

4- Use a very clean vase that has been washed thoroughly; if it is not clean enough for you to drink from it then neither should your flowers. The number one reason why roses get "bent necks" is actually from getting the stems plugged by bacteria (more than air)

5- You can use cold water or luck warm water but NEVER hot water, this will only stress the flowers and reduce their vase life.

6- Use commercial flower food in the water if available and make sure you follow the instructions as to the amount of water to be used. Most of the little bags that come with bouquets are either for ONE PINT or if they are larger, for one Quart of water. You have to use all the flower food that comes in the packet. If you use less food or too much water, you will not have enough bactericide in the water and bacteria will develop reducing the vase life.

7- Remove any leaves that will be covered by water as these rot and contaminate the water. Do not remove more than it is needed, roses especially need their leaves to be able to draw water from the stem ends. The leaves act as a water pump; as water is evaporated from the leaves, water is pulled up through the stem.

8- Cut 1-2 inches from the stem ends (no less than one inch) this will remove the blockage of bacteria, air and plant cells plugging the stems. It has been advised for many years to cut them under water. This is true, the stems form a vacuum inside, and when cut they suck air. The air will plug them for a while and can prevent water absorption, but it has been shown that the air bubble dissolves in a few hours if stems are placed in water right away. I would still recommend cutting them under water (just fill the sink) as long as the water is perfectly clean. The most important thing is to cut them with a very sharp knife or sharp sheers that will not crush or damage the stems and put them in the vase with water or solution right away.

9- Do not pierce the stem higher up as it was suggested, the vessels inside the stem are only one or two inches long, the air bubble remains on the bottom of the stem. Florists use this green wire to forcibly keep the heads from bending, but as long as you follow the previous advice this should not happen.

10- Put your flowers in a fresh area away from direct sunlight or heat from appliances (like from the TV) and away from air drafts (like in front of the AC vent).

11- If you re-cut the stems use fresh flower food solution to refill the vase.

If you do not have flower food you can make your own. It does not work as well as commercial ones, but it works better than plain water. Flower food is made of the following:
a- SUGAR: to feed the flowers (once cut from the plant they cannot produce their own food anymore.
b- BACTERICIDE: to kill bacteria in the water. If you add sugar without adding a bactericide you will have bacterial soup.
c- ACIDIFIER: water flows better up the stem at a low ph, flower food contains citric acid or other substances to make the water acidic. Bacteria do not reproduce as much in an acidic environment either.
d- SURFACTANT: something that reduces the water tension of the water so that it flows better (a kind of soap).

So to make your own, you can use one part of a lemon-flavored soda like Sprite, 7-UP, Sierra Mist etc (it has to be regular, it cannot be diet) and two parts water. This will provide the sugar and acidity your flowers need. However you need to kill the bacteria or it will be worse than using water alone. You need to add 3-5 DROPS (not a squirt) of Clorox to the water depending on the size of your vase. Mix it up before putting the flowers in it.
Make a fresh solution when you re-fill the vase.

As far as the aspirin goes, it helps a little because it acidifies the water, but you are still missing the key ingredients; sugar and a bactericide.

It looks complicated but it is not, just use clean...- everything!

Enjoy!!

Answer 2

Change their water daily, use room temp water, recut the ends each time you change the water, but don't leave the stems exposed to the air any longer than necessary. Better yet, cut the stems under water, hold for a moment and then move to water filled vase.

Is that a bother? I know, I was a florist and daily cutting is a bother, so I keep the flowers out of sunlight and change the water when I remember.....like every few days. (LOL!) My roses from Saturday still look great today and the water hasn't been changed, yet.......I'm going to do it now.

Answer 3

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Answer 4

put them in cold water cut the stem at a Angle add a aspirin to water keep out of light

Answer 5

cut off half an inch of the stem at the bottom at an angle, change the water and add plant food daily.