Bouquets of tulips and daffodils are such a treat in the spring to bring home to add colour and beauty to your home. But it can be frustrating when they only last a few days. There are several things that can cause any type of flowers to wilt away quickly, including: variety of flower, the environment where they are displayed, and general care after they are put in the vase.
Follow these 5 tips to increase the longevity of your next bouquet of flowers.
Tips to Increase the Longevity of Your Flower Bouquet:
1. Wash Your Vase
Before you add a fresh bouquet of flowers to your favourite vase, wash the vase with hot soapy water. A clean vase free of dirt and bacteria will go a long way to helping your flowers last longer. Make sure to dry the vase well after washing to make sure the soap is all out too.
2. Trim the Stems Regularly
To help tulips take up more water, clip about 2 cm off the stems every couple days. Using scissors or a knife cut the stems at a 45 degree angle to give the flower the largest surface area for drinking. Daffodils should not be re-cut after being put in a vase as they are sap producers and that sap can decrease the vase life of other flowers in the bouquet.
3. Change the Water Daily
Giving your flowers clean water daily will significantly increase the vase life of your flowers. Daily is best, but if you forget, as regularly as possible is still better than not changing the water at all. This might be the simplest step, but it is the one all of us usually forget!
4. Feed Your Blooms
No need to buy packages of flower food to dump into your vase of flowers, you can make homemade flower food with ingredients found in your kitchen.
DIY Flower Food Recipe
1 tablespoon sugar (heaping)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 litre of water
Mix all ingredients together and pour some of this mixture into your vase each time you change the water.
The sugar provides the food (nutrients) for the cut flowers, and the acidity of the lemon juice and apple cider vinegar prevent bacteria growth.
5. Avoid Direct Sunlight
A vase of tulips or daffodils in the direct sun streaming in a window can make a great photo opportunity, but it is not the best place to keep your blooms. Direct sunlight all the time can significantly reduce vase life. Cut flowers also don't like temperature fluctuations, so right by the heater or air conditioner vent is not a great location either.
By following these 5 tips you can enjoy those beautiful spring blooms even longer. These tips also work for all types of cut flowers. So as spring ends and we move into summer when the blooms in your garden are plentiful, keep that jug of flower food handy, you may end up needing a few more vases too!