How to make freshly cut flowers last longer

Many people are disappointed by how long cut flowers last. A common question is how to make flowers last longer. You may have noticed that florists include a packet of floral preservatives to extend the life span of their cut flowers. For someone with store bought flowers, and a packet of preservatives. It is a simple course of action, simply pour the perservative into your vase of water. But, for someone without a packet of preservative, or who has just cut some flowers from their garden, they may be wondering how they can extend the life of their flowers?

Firstly, we need to discover what florists put in the preservative,

- An alive flower produces it's own supply of sugar from a process called photosynthesis. The more sugar it produces, the larger the stem, head and petals. Therefore, one of the key ingredients in a preservative is sugar.

- A cut flower will still hydrate itself by absorbing water. Florists have discovered however, that a water with acidic properties, like a small concentration of citric acid, will aid in the hydration process.

- Bacteria is another problem for cut flowers. If you mix sugar into water, then the water can soon become a breeding ground for bacteria. Which will stop the ability of the flower to successfully hydrate. The bacteria will block and plug the stem of the flower. Therefore an anti-bacterial agent is needed for any preservative.

So there you have it, most preservatives are a combination of three things, sugar, acid, and an anti-bacterial agent.

Advice for Using a Store Bought Preservative

A packet of preservative should include a list of ingredients. It's always a good idea to examine an ingredients list. Not all preservatives are effective. Discard any solution which does not include the three properties highlighted above. A solution made only of sugar will cause more harm than good. Likewise, too little solution provided has the same effects. A weak solution will include not enough anti-bacterial and acidic attributes. This will over power the water with sugar and create bacteria.

How can you tell if you have a problem with bacteria? The first sign is cloudy water. Healthy water is clear. Immediately replace any cloudy water with fresh water and wipe the stems of the flowers. If your water has bacteria, then it will cut the life span of your flowers in half. Therefore, it is better to place your flowers in clear water, than to pour an inferior solution of preservative into the water.

Making Your Own Preservative

If you are the kind of person who hates the expense of fancy store bought solutions, provided below are some untested trial and error suggestions,

Preservative Trials

1. Put a tablet of Aspirin into the water. Aspirin can help thin the blood, likewise it's proposed it can have a similar effect for combating any bacteria in water.

2. A small amount of either Vodka, bleach, or mouthwash with alcohol which all fight bacteria. Too much will obviously kill the flower, so be tentative in your trials. About half a tea spoon of bleach may be a starting place to begin the trial.

3. A combination of sugar, citrus acid juice from a lemon, and anti-bacterial surface cleaning agent mixed together. Write down the amounts per trial and check the results.

4. Combine white vinegar and sugar. Around two table spoons of each in a quart of water.

If your not concerned with using a preservative agent, then below are some simple tips for placing your flowers in a vase of water,

General Tips

1. Fill the vase to the top, and make sure no dead pieces of foliage are floating in the water. This will create bacteria.

2. Do not over crowd the vase, give each steam enough room to breath.

3. When bringing bought flowers home place them in a vase of warm water.

4. Cut the stems of the flowers before placing them in water. Dried up stems cannot absorb water and hydrate the flower as easily.