Roses Being Arranged in a Vase

Because roses are the number one Valentine’s Day gift, I wanted to share a few tips that I have learned over the years to help you to get the maximum vase life from your fresh cut roses.

My Favorite Rose Secrets

• Hydration is what’s it’s all about so be sure to get you roses in water as soon as possible.
• Fill a clean vase ¾ of the way with warm water.
• Add a packet of flower food according to package directions. Flower food contains a biocide to kill bacteria, an acidifier to help stems drink water, and a sugar to nourish the blooms. If you don’t have any commercially prepared flower food you can make your own recipe at home by adding three teaspoons of lemon-lime soda (non-diet) and one teaspoon of bleach to one quart of water. The soda provides the food source (sugar) and the acidifier and the bleach will help prevent bacteria growth.
• Another way to prevent bacteria growth in the water is to remove all foliage from you flower stems that would fall below the water line, before placing your flowers in the vase.
• Right before placing your flowers in the prepared vase give the bottom of each stem a fresh cut - on an angle. Cutting the stem on an angle prevents the stem from sitting flush on the bottom of the vase thus allowing maximum water intake.
• Check the water level in your vase on a daily basis and add fresh water as needed.
• After 3-4 days repeat these steps for optimum vase life!

Learn how to arrange roses with step-by-step instructions in my latest blog post here.