Boon Blooms Care

Did you receive your Boon Blooms!? Yay!!!

I'm so excited for you to enjoy your fresh flowers! I’ve researched some tips and tricks over the years and one of the best resources I've found is an article on Home and Family’s website. It was written by Erl Svendson in 2012 and it's bookmarked for my personal reminder for flower care.

It reads…

“Now that you’ve given or received cut flowers, the question is how to make them last as long as possible. Flowers, of course, do not last forever and eventually fade as they fulfill their function of producing seed. However, you should expect cut flowers to last for more than just a few days.

There are three main causes that greatly reduce their vase-life (i.e. the length of time that flowers look good in a vase): clogged or reduced water uptake (typically caused by bacteria), ethylene gas and incorrect temperature.

Here’s what you can do to combat this problem:

1. Before using, make sure the vase is clean. Swish a little bleach in it to kill any residual bacteria and then rinse it out thoroughly.
2. Fill the vase with clean water. Use the floral preservative (according to directions) that usually comes with store-bought flowers. Among other things, it acidifies the water and creates an inhospitable environment for bacteria. If you don’t have floral preservatives, add 30 mL (2 tbsp) of vinegar plus 5 mL (1 tsp) of sugar to a liter (quart) of room-temperature water. ( Note from Boon Mail: Adding sugar is controversial and could cause bacteria growth in water. You can leave this out and just add a little vinegar to help prevent bacteria ) 
3. Remove any leaves that will be below the water level. Leaves may be a source of bacteria and will rapidly decay in water.
4. Cut new ends on the flower stems with a sharp knife. Cutting a new end will ensure that all the water-sucking tubes are clear of bacterial clogs.
5. If possible, cut the stems under water to prevent air bubbles from entering and blocking the xylem tubes. This is the reason why some flowers bend just below the bloom shortly after being placed in the vase.
6. Cut on the stem angle so that the stems do not sit flat on the bottom of the vase.
7. Replace the water daily.
8. Recut the stems every third day. Ethylene is an invisible and odorless gas that is naturally produced by plants and is important in fruit ripening and other plant processes. Flowers exposed to ethylene will quickly fade. The good news is that it is fairly easy to deal with.
9. Do not place cut flowers near ripening fruit, especially apples, pears, apricots, melons, peaches, nectarines, kiwis, papayas, bananas, avocados, pineapple, plums tomatoes, and mangos.
10. Remove fading flowers promptly. These too will produce ethylene gas causing the rest of bouquet to fade quickly. Cool temperatures will delay the eventual flower senescence, while warm temperatures will hasten flower fading. Too cold a temperature less than 40°F, however, will result in damage. 
11. Do not place the vase in direct sun.
12. Keep it away from heat registers.
13. Do not place atop your TV.
14. Avoid cold blasts of winter air from exterior doors or leaky windows.

Follow these simple directions and your cut flowers should last one, two or even three weeks.”

It doesn’t get more informative than that my friends! Taking even a few of these tips will help make your flowers last longer. I hope you enjoy your Boon Blooms!

April Hatchell

Owner, Boon Mail