Brighten up your day with Flowers!

Brighten up your day with Flowers!

I know there are still parts of our country shoveling snow, and I do hope a thaw is in sight for you soon.

I also know that I love flowers year round.

Particularly spring flowers…so I try to pick up a bouquet or two when I visit the Farmer’s Market and/or my supermarket.

“They” say….whoever “they” are, that flowers in a room changes your mood to a happy one.  I believe it!

 Which then brings to mind … keeping the flowers fresh longer and keeping them from wilting the day after you purchase them or bring them in from your garden.  

We know that unfortunately, flowers can’t remain blooming forever, once they are cut, but there are ways to make blooms last just a bit longer.

Usually, the flowers come with a little packet of “chrysal stuff” that actually prolongs the freshness of the beautiful blooms.

So use that little packet if you have one.

We have all heard our mothers and grandmothers give us tips on keeping our flower blooms blooming…. and some of the tips seem to work and some…well, don’t.

Ever heard the question…penny for your thoughts? 

Of course you have and pennies do seem to make a difference when one is placed in a vase of tulips….the tulips seem to stand tall and not droop over as much…..and we all have had droopy tulips…at least I have…and we are talking about flowers here! 🙂 

So pennies are good for some many things….

• find a penny, pick it up…all day long, have good luck
• put a penny in a bag of water to keep flies away from your outdoor dinner
• put a penny in a vase of tulips and it changes the balance of the water which makes the tulips stand tall.

For those of us aging a bit….our doctors have recommended taking a 81 milligram aspirin every day to help your heart…AND I have also learned that placing a crushed aspirin in the water before you add your favorite flowers…. aids in the stems soaking up more water, which keeps the flowers hydrated longer.

We all know a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down and certainly I like a taste of “sweet” now and then.

Well, my bouquet of flowers are just like me….so I sprinkle a little sugar in the water which helps the flowers to absorb the flower (sugar) food along with the aspirin.

So if sugar can be good for keeping my flower blooms fresh longer….what about a little spice?

I always have alum on hand for my canning of cucumbers… and apparently those beautiful hydrangeas that we grew in Seattle like to have their cut stems dipped in the alum before being placed in the water. Hydrangeas stay hydrated with less wilting. 

 And for my friends who like to have a little cocktail before dinner….just pour a little vodka in your cocktail glass AND in your vase of flowers and you will ward off bacteria which will keep your blooms lasting longer.  (I am not sure that works for the drinker of the vodka) haha

Another tip is to be sure to change out your water for your flowers every couple days and remove any leaf debris that might have fallen off in the water.

AND the final tip for having gorgeous blooms lasting a longer time is something I learned from Only Daughter.

Only daughter worked for a time in the Floral department of the supermarket and she said to be sure and cut the ends off the stem of roses (or any blooming flower) by running the stem under water while cutting at an angle. The stems absorb more water as the surface is at a slant and the open “wound” does not have a chance to have a coating that would prevent water absorption.  

In fact, anytime you change the water on your blooming posies, you should re-cut the stems so the flowers can have a nice long drink of fresh water.

I just love flowers….and right now Spring flowers are popping up everywhere….they just make me happy when I enter a room and see fresh flowers.

I hope these tips help you to have longer lasting blooms.

Do you my dear readers, have any other tips to keeping your blooms happy?