Bring flowers home immediately
Especially in the warm summer months, leaving flowers in a hot car or out of water will stress them out. Bring them home as soon as possible and try to keep them in a cool, shady spot if they are going to be out of water for an extended time.
Trim, hydrate, arrange.
Our hand cut bouquets are incredibly special because they come directly from the farm to your home. This means that by buying our bouquets you are both an advocate for keeping money in YOUR community, as well as cutting down on a global carbon footprint. Did you know most flowers you buy in grocery stores and florists are grown in other continents, and flown in to to the USA and then trucked to your local stores? Think of all those fossil fuels you are paying for when you buy foreign flowers!
In order to keep our costs down to compete with large retailers, I must spend very little time (60-90 seconds per bouquet) arranging your flowers. This means when you get them home, you have a little work to do! Let your creative juices fly while you arrange these blooms in your favorite container (I personally love .5 gal mason jar for a vase):
First trim your stems with a very sharp pair of clippers, to avoid crushing the stems. Make sure there is no leaf material in the water, this will rot and shorten your vase life.
Fill your clean container of choice with room temperature water. A clean container is essential. I know it can be tempting to just briefly rinse your favorite vase- but if it has gunk on the bottom from previous flowers, make sure to clean with a little bleach or run it through the dishwasher. That gunk can get sucked up into your stems and severely limit your flower's vase life. If you prefer to use flower food, you can add that now. Make sure it is fully mixed into the water.
Arrange tall blooms in the back and allow shorter ones to fill in the front and sides, remembering that the flowers will not like being handled too much. They will look beautiful no matter what, so don't get too caught up in your floral design.
Enjoy your blooms for 7-10 days!
Avoid direct sunlight, heat, and fresh fruit or strong odors
Your flowers will last longer in a cooler room. I love putting my flowers in the bathroom or a darker room, where they add joy, color, and life to otherwise dim areas. Don't forget- your flowers are a perishable item, just like fruits and veggies. When they are growing, flowers love sun- but they will ripen faster in a warm, sunny spot- just like a banana!
You’ll also want to avoid areas like open windows, heating or cooling vents and ceiling fans as they can cause the flowers to quickly dehydrate.
The ethylene gasses that some fruit gives off will also cause flowers to ripen quickly, so try to keep flowers on display in their own section of the kitchen!
Remeber that flowers are delicate and sensitive, which is why we find them so mesmerizing. Take care of your blooms and they will last a long time.
Change the water
Clean water will keep your flowers fresh and looking great. Every few days take your bouquet out, rinse your container and replace with fresh clean water. Remove any leaf material that may have gotten in the water.
Remove dead blooms
All of your CSA bouquets will be mixed flowers. Some of the blooms will last longer than others. To continue to enjoy your flowers, remove blooms that are wilting and dying as they can begin to grow mold and contaminate the still pretty blooms. If the stems are soft and soggy when you change the water, toss those blooms or if you aren't ready to part with them, put them in a different container so they don't taint the healthy flowers.
Oh No! I forgot about my flowers and they got all wilted and sad looking! Is there anything I can do?
Yes! You can save wilted blooms and fried seedlings! Next blog post I will discuss how to revive your neglected plants. Stay in touch with me for more tips and tricks for flower success!
As always, signing out with love and gratitude,
MJ
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