For all fresh flowers, when you first bring them home you’ll want to cut the stems to your ideal length, place them in fresh water, and consider adding plant food in the beginning to help them last longer. Once their settled into a vase, place them in a cool, shady spot – that’s where they will best thrive and don’t forget to keep their water clean by changing it out every 3 days or so!
Keep reading for some of our go-to tips for a few of our fresh flowers that are in full bloom right now!
Peonies
One of our favorite tricks to help your peonies last longer is to store them in your fridge at night and work to replace the water every day or every other day. As with most stems, when you trim to your ideal length, be sure to cut at an angle so that they can absorb all of the water that they need to continue to bloom.
Poppies
Poppies can be pretty thirsty – to help them quench their thirst cut the stems to your ideal length, pour a few inches of boiled water into a mug and then blanche the stems in the hot water for 5-10 seconds. After blanching, place them in room temperature water, and let them settle in somewhere cool and shady.
Nigella
Nigella’s can last anywhere from 7-10+ days in a vase. To lengthen their life, be sure to keep their water clean, and consider adding some plant food to give them a little boost. As well, Nigella is a great flower for drying – when the petals start to fall off, tie a small bunch together and hang them upside down in a cool, dry place until the flower has dried completely.
Agrostemma
Be gentle with your agrostemma as their stems are quite thin and can bend easily! As with most flowers, you’ll want to keep the water clean by changing it out about every 3 days.
Snapdragon
With a green-thumb and our tips for fresh-cut flowers, your snapdragon stems can last anywhere from 5-16+ days! Cut the stems to your ideal length, fill a vase with fresh water, add a pinch of sugar, a few drops of bleach (truly a few drops, but it's not an exact science!) and let your flowers settle in to their new home!
Do you have any go-to tips for helping your flowers stay vibrant and fresh? Send your tips along to info@freshpickinsfarm.com – we’d love to hear them!