Hello flower lovers!
This is a post for those lucky enough to get some Roses on Valentine's Day or maybe you have them in your garden. Roses are definitely one of my favourite flowers. I try to not like them but when you move beyond grocery store Roses and walk into the wide world of Florist Roses, you can't help but appreciate how magnificent they really are. Try Google searching David Austen, Cappuccino, Quicksand, Just Magic, Red Lace ... I could go on! I have met many people who don't care about Roses and in fact my husband is one of them! As a Florist, I've come to appreciate them even more as they are hardy flowers and fabulous in wedding work, especially during our hot Aussie Summers. But beware, garden Roses are not all good as cut flowers. That'll be a matter of trial and error.
Before becoming a Florist, I didn't really know much about flower care. I knew if you received any that you put them in water, but that doesn't mean that I did haha. I have this half humorous and half embarrassing (only now as a Florist) story. One year I received a dozen red Roses for Valentine's Day. I think I was about 18 years-old at the time. They came in this beautiful long box and when I opened it up I was so amazed by the beauty of the Roses ... I loved them so much! And left them in the box... I didn't know what to do with them and so they just sat in there until it rotted and I had to chuck them out. Such a waste! Now, when I see friends or family with their bunches of flowers, I'll go over to their flowers and tend to them for them.
You don't need to be a Florist to know how to care for flowers. Some basic tips are:
Cut the stems on a 45 degree angle. As soon as you receive your flowers, do this just before putting them into a vase of water.
Make sure your vase is clean to start with and when changing the water, if the vase needs a clean, clean it.
Make sure there are no leaves below the water line and pull out any leaves that drop into the vase.
Change the water every second day or when you see that the water is getting murky and definitely if you see the integrity of the stem is lessening.
When you change the water, cut about 2 cm off the stems at a 45 degree angle with sharp scissors, secateurs or a knife.
Some extras tips for your Roses:
Roses like warm water and so ensuring that you fill the vase with warm water will make them very happy.
Roses like a lot of water so fill the vase up about 70% with water.
Be sure that you've chosen a vase tall enough for them or cut the stems down a bit so they can stand tall in the vase and not topple over or bend. Don't cut them too short to begin with otherwise when you snip off about 2cm each time you change the water they'll be too short for the vase.
If I have a big bunch of flowers, I enjoy them in the big arrangement for a couple of days and then I get out little jars or vases and pop a few stems in them and scatter them around the house. You can read more about why I do this here!
Before the flowers wilt or brown, you can try drying them by hanging them upside down in a dark, well ventilated area. Please note, colour will fade over time.
Here's a video where I demo this:
I hope you found this helpful and that it will lengthen the life of your Roses! If you want any Valentine's Day flowers, I'll be delivering on Sunday only and I'll have a limited amount I'll be making up. You can click here to take a look at the two options I have :). I hope you have a fabulous rest of the week!
xo rose
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