Flowers in Your Home Part III

Yesterday, I posted about how flowers improve your well-being. Read it here.

Not only do flowers feed our souls and make our homes look beautiful, they give us something new and different in our home and workplace to look at every week. Let’s face it; unless you buy new things all the time, your belongings can become invisible or even boring. A fresh arrangement or two every week (in the same or in different places) can bring a whole new perspective to an entire room! This happens because a new object is seen in relation to its surroundings. For example, if you put a large blue vase with pink and magenta roses on your coffee table, the colors, shapes and textures of the flowers and vase will interact with the objects near them.

Obviously, you can buy ready-made arrangements, but making your own is fun and easy. Arrangements can be as simple as a bunch of tulips placed in a glass vase to a huge, complicated mixed bouquet topiary. If you have no experience arranging flowers, start with a simple arrangement using one type of flower in one color. Tulips are great because they grow after they are cut, and you can watch them change as they mature; opening and bending their delicate stems towards a light source.

For inspiration, there are many beautifully illustrated books on flower arranging. Another option is to take a class in flower arranging. Practice designing with different flowers, baskets and vases and have some fun!  

Care and Conditioning of Flowers

Take proper care of cut flowers and they should last at least a week. Some flowers, such as carnations, orchids, mums and alstroemeria, last far longer. If you purchase an arrangement in floral foam (the green holding medium for flowers that are used in plastic containers and baskets), simply add water everyday or so.

For fresh-cut flowers, remove all stem leaves that will be submersed in water. The leaves carry bacteria which will cause the flowers to expire faster. Cut the stems at a diagonal to allow the largest drinking surface possible, using a florist’s knife or sharp scissors. Use either the flower food the flowers came with (follow directions on package) or add homemade flower food to tepid water and a clean vase.

Homemade Flower Food:

·       Recipe One:

For every 24 ounces of water, add 1 teaspoon white vinegar, 1 tablespoon sugar and one crushed aspirin.

·       Recipe Two:

  Fifty percent Sprite or 7up and fifty percent water.

·       Recipe Three:

Place a copper penny or two into the water, as copper inhibits the growth of bacteria.

Flowers will last longest in cool temperatures, away from direct sunlight, drafts and electronic appliances. For optimum life of your flower arrangement, refrigerate overnight. Conversely, if you purchase flowers for a special event and they are not open enough, put the flowers in very warm water. Then cover flowers with a plastic bag, and secure a tie around flowers and stems. This creates a greenhouse effect, which will speed up the opening process.

Recut flower stems and change water every few days. Discard flowers once they have peaked, as the energy will be spent and old flowers look and feel bad.

When you clean your vase, use the hottest water that you can safely handle and scrub with soap, or put into the dishwasher. If you don’t properly clean the vase, you run the risk of infecting fresh flowers with bacteria from the old arrangement.