Caring for your flowers.
At Botanique we love a happy customer here are some tips to help extend your flower life.
Cut Flowers
Prepare a clean vase with fresh water. Remove flowers from the water satchel they have arrived in and trim stems diagonally about 2 cm from the base prior to placing into the vase. Take special care to remove all leaves that will be underwater as they contain bacteria that may quickly spoil the water.
Arrangements in flower foam
Top up the water level on arrival taking care to not overfill. Then daily check and top up water levels.
Position the flowers away from draughts, direct heat, sunlight or extreme cold. Do not place them on heat generation appliances like TV’s and microwave ovens.
Some flowers last longer than others, every day carefully remove all spent blooms, especially if other flowers in your display are still alive. The ethelene from the spent blooms will shorten the life of all of your flowers.
Lily pollen
As the lily buds open and before they are fully open carefully remove the pollen from centre of each bud with a tissue.
Hot weather
When flowers are exposed to heat, they respire at a greater rate than at lower temperatures. Respiration is basically what causes ageing in most living organisms. Flowers have high rates of respiration, making them one of the most perishable of all agricultural crops. The cooler the room or location they are displayed, the longer they will last.
Cold conditions below 4 degrees Celsius
Conversely, actual internal flower cells can easily become damaged if subjected to very low temperatures. Flowers grown in tropical areas, such as Orchids and Anthuriums, are particularly susceptible to low temperature damage. Never put your flowers in a freezer or anywhere that is below 4 degrees Celsius.
Draughty positions
Draughty positions are also unfavourable spots to locate your flowers. The petals tend to dry out and respire more quickly in these areas. A corner position is preferable to a hallway or near open doors.
Direct sunlight
Flowers which are subjected to direct sunlight can easily become overheated, resulting in an increased rate of respiration and the drying out of petals etc, leading to reduced vase life.
Air conditioning
It’s been noted that usually with air conditioning (especially in large offices or stores), fresh flowers tend to dry out very quickly. This is particularly the case with flowers that have large, exposed petals.
Ripening fruit and vegetables
Perhaps one of the biggest enemies of cut flowers is ethylene gas which is given off by ripening fruit and vegetables. It speeds up the dying process of many flowers. Some of the more sensitive varieties to ethylene gas are Carnations, Roses, Orchids, Lilies, Sweet William and Gypsophila.
Crushing or splitting of flower stems
Unfortunately in the past, many people have been led to believe that the crushing or splitting of flower stems is a good way of extending vase life. Recent tests have shown that this method generally does not work. It actually does tremendous damage to the tiny tube-like vessels in the stems, blocking the flow of water up to the flower heads, and leads to a faster discoloration of the vase water too.
Other dead flowers
When flowers are arranged in a vase, some of the flower heads will naturally die before others. It is a good idea to remove these heads quickly, because if left on the stems, they not only look unsightly, but will give off small amounts of ethylene gas, which will diminish the life of any remaining flowers.
Dirty water
Dirty water provides a perfect breeding ground for microscopic bacteria to breed rapidly. These bacteria attach themselves to the stem ends and block the flow of water up to the flower heads. You should always change the vase water regularly or use the cut flower food provided which will decrease the rate at which these bacteria breed.
Metal containers
Metal containers can cause unusual reactions with water and with many flower preservatives. This can lead to the preservative being far less effective in solution.