Have you ever seen a spectacular flower arrangement, took one look at it, and thought, “How in the world did they make that a reality?” Or maybe it’s your fifth time in two weeks that you’re stopping by your local grocery store and to your astonishment, you notice that the exact same floral arrangement that was there two weeks earlier is still just as vibrant and very much alive as the first day you saw it. Well, our florists are going to give you some of the best industry tips and tricks to help you create the perfect flower arrangement that will last well-past the two days that you’re accustomed to.
1. Floral tape is your best friend!
Some of the most sought-after floral arrangements for table centerpieces are ones that are arranged in a bubble bowl or fishbowl vase. Unfortunately, however, dealing with these sorts of vases brings the issue of a large opening. How in the world do you begin to get your flowers to stand straight up as opposed to falling to the edges? Floral tape friends! As a florist floral tape becomes your best friend. Keeping the type of flower arrangement you’d like to make in mind, create a grid using your floral tape over the wide opening of the bowl. And voila! Now, you’ll be able to place a floral stem in your bowl vase without it toppling over.
2. Boiling water
So you just purchased your beautiful hydrangeas from either your local flower shop or grocery store and notice them beginning to wilt. There’s no need to worry. Boil a pot of water to about 110 degrees Fahrenheit and pour it into your clean vase, add your favorite flower food to the water, give your hydrangea stems a good cut (at an angle), and place the stems in the water. Give it an hour or so and watch them spring back to life. Warm water molecules move faster through the stem so it can be absorbed by the flowers much quicker than cold water, and this trick can be used with most cut flowers (with the exception of bulb flowers like tulips and hyacinths, which need cold water).
3. Bleach and sugar
Ever get home after your floral purchase and realize that you’ve forgotten the flower food? One famous trick that our florists use and a perfect substitute for store-bought flower food are 3 drops of bleach combined with 1 teaspoon of sugar for every 1 quart of water. This will help feed you beautiful flowers while preventing bacterial growth beneath the water, all of which will elongate the life of your birthday flower arrangement.
4. Spray your blooms
Another easy trick to elongate the life of your floral bouquet is to mist the heads of your blooms with good ol’ water. Spraying the heads of your blooms will help hydrate them quicker and will extend the life of your arrangement.
5. Choosing the right vase is critical!
Your vase selection will either help you in your endeavors of building a perfect flower arrangement or it can make your life a living hell. Choose a rose vase with a narrow neck and wide bottom when choosing to arrange one dozen roses. The narrow neck will help hold your stems in place and will also create a perfect grid for standing the longer stem roses in the center.
Select a spring garden vase if you’re looking to create a mixed arrangement of lilies, roses, snapdragons, stock, foliage, and any other mixed flower arrangement. The spring garden’s hourglass shape will help keep your floral stems in place while providing ample room to place all of your fresh blooms.
6. Foliage under water promotes bacterial growth
Bacteria is your worst enemy when it comes to making and maintaining your perfect flower arrangement. Ensure that foliage remains above the waterline and that loose fallen greens haven’t fallen into the water. Foliage underwater will promote bacterial growth and shorten the lifespan of your floral bouquet.
7. Cut flower stems at an angle
Florists can’t stress the importance of this enough. Imagine making a flower arrangement one day just to find it wilted and dying the next day. That can be extremely frustrating especially if it took quite a bit of time to arrange. Cutting fresh flower stems at an angle will ensure that the stem’s end won’t lie flat against the vase preventing water absorption. The angular trim allows the bloom space between the edge of the vase and a portion of its bottom.
Learning these few easy hacks will help you save time and money, while still impressing your friends and family with your DIY flower arrangements. They’ll be shocked to learn that you didn’t purchase their birthday flower bouquet from an expert florist nor did you have to make a trip to your neighborhood flower shop. Anyone can learn the art of floral artistry. Let us know your favorite floral hacks below in the comments and happy flower-building friends!
