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How to Care for Fresh Cut Flowers

Friday, March 13th, 2009

416-Florist carries the most fresh and beautiful flowers available, yet some people stray from getting flowers as they believe that they die within a couple of days. However, this is not true because there are simple precautions that one can take to keep your fresh cut flowers looking incredible for 3 times longer or more than is widely believed. Here are some handy tips on how to keep your beautiful flower arrangements looking their best for the maximum amount of time possible:

How to Care for Fresh Cut Flowers:

First off, you must make sure that the vase you are placing your fresh cut flowers in is sanitized because if bacteria are present in the vase, they will most definitely kill your flowers and prevent them from looking beautiful for as long as they possibly can.

Before placing them in your vase, cut a couple centimeters off the stems under warm water on a slant using a very sharp tool which will provide maximum surface area for water and food uptake.

Make sure to remove all leaves that are below water level to avoid bacteria and algae formation.

Use fresh warm water to fill your vase and add flower food that came with your fresh cut flowers. This will stimulate water uptake since warm water has less oxygen and air bubbles and will encourage growth. The flower food will provide your beautiful fresh cut flowers with sustenance and allow them to look beautiful for as long as possible. If you do not have flower food on hand, here is a recipe you can make at home that will do the trick:

1 teaspoon of bleach
1 teaspoon of vinegar
2 teaspoons of sugar
1 litre of room temperature water

Now that you have prepared your vase full of flowers using these simple tips, there are still a few other measures to be considered.

Your prepared vase should be kept out of direct sunlight, appliances that generate heat, heater vents, drafts and droughts because this stimulates bacterial growth. Make sure to keep them in a cool, temperate spot.

You must be careful that your flowers are not exposed to extreme temperature fluctuations. Going from hot to cold and vice versa will shock your blooms and cause them to die. Always keeping them in a cool, shaded area, that maintains consistency will ensure your flowers will last a very long time.

One of the most important things to do to keep your blooms looking beautiful is to change the water and add new food to it daily or every other day. Topping off the water will not help. Also, every few days, you can trim the stems as explained above again to prolong the life of your flowers.

Make sure not to place your flowers near fruits because they emit ethylene gas while ripening and this causes flowers to wilt and die much faster. Smoke from cigarettes also contains harmful elements, so make sure to keep them away from smoke.

Make sure to remove dying flowers, or wilted flowers from the bunch as these also emit ethylene and will cause the other flowers in the bouquet to die faster.

As you can see, caring for your fresh cut flowers from 416-Florist is very simple, and does not take much effort. Using these simple steps will ensure your flowers to last at least for 1 week, which is a long time to enjoy a beautiful bouquet of the most beautiful and vibrant fresh cut flowers.

Posted in Flower Care, Flowers, Plant Care | No Comments »

Tips on what to get for Valentine’s Day!

Monday, January 12th, 2009

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The pressure is on! It’s Valentine’s Day, and lets be frank, every year the expectations get higher. That’s okay we have your back. 416-Florist.com knows how to impress the sweethearts with the perfect bouquet of roses, and if your tired of red roses then you might want to opt for different types of flowers. Here our top ten romantic floral arrangements for Valentine’s Day!

10. The single rose: You might just have met, or its the debut of your relationship, but a single rose is the equivalent to the safe card. It shows you have the potential of a romantic relationship, but for now lets get to know each other. Thankfully a single rose will most likely be in your budget, and sometimes the rose itself is classier than with lots of baby’s breath and greenery. 416-Florist.com has provided you these roses.,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

9. Red and pink flowers with wax flower: You can pick the flowers for this one, personally gerberas are always a safe and pretty flower, not as romantic as roses, but you can throw roses and lilies in the bouquet just for fun. Don’t forget to accent your bouquet, wax flowers always do a nice job, throw a couple of ferns and you have yourself a nice bouquet for that special date.,

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8. A dozen red Calla lilies: That might be knew to some, but yes there are red Calla lilies, and yes they are gorgeous.Â Just make sure to call and order these before hand, 416-Florist.com does a fantastic job in bringing in the flowers you want!

7. Calla lilies, red roses and chocolates: Well this is something, the combination of the most romantic flowers along with scrumptious dessert, your sure to have a pleasant and delicious evening. You can even chose to have your flowers arranged in a vase along with nice greenery and baby’s breath.

6. Dozen roses wrapped and a box of truffles: Yummy and classic! Let’s face it some say oh just dozen red roses, but those people most likely don’t get flowers that often, because if you do you know a dozen red roses are totally worth receiving each year!

5. Red roses and calla lilies: I’m guessing your planning to go classy this year? Well if you are then this is the perfect choice! You can have a very luscious red bouquet with red calla lilies or just a nice bouquet of white calla lilies with luscious red or any other color rose.

4. Dozen red roses in a box: It’s just tradition! you’ve seen it in the movies, that long white box with the beautifully wrapped ribbons attached with a card. The thrill of opening that box is amazing and I’m sure your sweetheart will enjoy opening their box of roses just as much.

3. 24 Red roses in a box: Were going to upgrade a bit. Let’s take those luscious red roses and double it. Anyway who doesn’t love something doubled? Same beautiful white box and lovely ribbons!

2. 24 red roses with Calla Lilies: I believe you see the trend, the more roses, the more calla lilies, the more impressive the arrangement. You can add some baby’s breath or my pick limonium, along with greenery, and if you like, a nice vase to arrange it in.

1. Vases of red roses, petals and candles: This is possibly the most romantic you can make an environment! Just go crazy with the amount of rose vases in the room, scatter petals all over the place and arrange beautifully scented candles all around the place. For the desert, a delicious chocolate cake or ice cream will do just right!

Posted in Christmas, Flower Care, Flowers, Mother's Day, The Best of the Best, Valentine's Day, Wedding Flowers | No Comments »

Caring for Your Cut Flowers

Wednesday, June 11th, 2008

You’ve just received a bouquet of cut flowers, and you want them to last as long as possible. Taking proper care of them will ensure that they’ll stay beautiful for several days (or even weeks in some cases), just like the first day you received them.

Your flowers need a home right away so transferring your bouquet to a vase should be done as soon as possible. Prepare a clean vase, preferably plastic, ceramic or glass, that’s large enough to handle all of the blooms. Crowding them will encourage the growth of bacteria and shorten their lifespan. Fill the vase with clean lukewarm water (or cold water if they were originally bulbs) and add the flower food that is often included in the packaging. If you didn’t receive any, you can add a bit of sugar to the water instead. It’s important not to combine old flowers with new ones, since harmful bacteria may be transferred by doing so.

After you’ve gently unwrapped the cellophane or paper around the bouquet by cutting it open with scissors, remove any damaged flowers and trim the lower leaves off of the stems so none will be submerged in water when placed in the vase. Then, using a sharp knife or pair of scissors, cut about 2 cm diagonally off the bottom of the stems underwater. This should be repeated if the bottom of the stems appear rotted or slimy.

For all flowers, clean the vase and change the water every couple of days.

Place your completed bouquet away from draught, direct sunlight and heaters. It is also recommended that the flowers not be placed near fruit, since ripe fruit emits gases that are believed to be harmful.

And remember: if you’re buying cut flowers, you should always select ones that not only look fresh, but that have also been picked at the right time. For example, lilies are usually harvested while the blooms are still closed, so don’t be surprised if you receive some in your bouquet. They’ll eventually open up and last longer because of this. On the other hand, most dahlias and chrysanthemum are cut when fully open since they don’t generally open further.

If you didn’t get a chance to put your flowers into a vase immediately, and they’ve started to wilt and become limp, then simply trim a couple cm off the stems underwater, wrap them in paper, and chill for about couple of hours. This will freshen them up and restore their beauty.

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