Winter Wonderland from Organic Bouquet

• Flower food from an actual flower shop works the best for keeping blooms fresh for longer amounts of time. Tricks like a penny, changing the water, sugar, bleach, and so on are tricks many talk about and when I worked at a nursery we tried all of them but actual flower food works the best.
• Start clean – dirty or moldy containers or vases will kill flowers off quickly. Wash containers well, and if you add any extras, like holiday decor on a stick, wash those too. Make sure to rinse the soap off well because the pH of soap will also change the water quality.
• Cut off any leaves that may fall below the water line in the vase. Leaves sitting in water get icky, smell funky, look bad, and promotes bacteria growth.
• If you’re making bouquets with holiday bulbs use cold water not room temp because they’ll hold up longer.
• When I worked at the rose nursery we’d submerge wilting roses in cool water for a few hours.
• If giving flowers as a gift, keep them cool until you give them. I.e. place them in the garage or another cool spot. If you want open, fresh smelling blooms bring them inside for a few hours before giving them out. If you’ve got no time to spare, unopened flowers can be forced open if you place them in very warm (not hot) tap water. BUT make sure that after the blooms open you place the flowers into normal room temp water.
• And it goes without saying that if you’re using flowers for decor, say on the table for your holiday party or dinner, you need to wait until as late as possible to get the flowers.

Post from: Blisstree

Keep Christmas Bouquets Fresh

Only pick flowers right before placing them in a vase: At the flower shop I worked with we considered the lifespan of picked flowers super short; as in under a week. If roses didn’t sell within a week, we’d send them back to the farm for compost. Flowers after being cut are basically dying right away. If you need a beautiful bouquet for a party, picking your flowers should be something you do right before the event. IF you need open blooms fast, place the flowers in warm water.

Use only clean vases and other containers: Many gardening and floral books say you should only put flowers in bleach cleaned vases. I’m not a bleach supporter, plus research shows that hot water does clean. Your goal is to clean any mold spores out because obviously mold is not good for flowers. Also, after washing rinse your vases well, as soap can change the water conditions.

Never submerge leaves in the water: Any foliage below the water line should be removed because they can introduce bacteria and slime you don’t want to the water, which in turn smells funky and can kill flowers.

Cut flowers like room temp: Flowers hate being on something hot; i.e. a too sunny window, on top of an appliance, and so on. They also don’t love drafts. Try to keep your vases placed in an area that’s moderate.

Hardy stems need a good smashing: If you pound on the ends of woody or thick stems – think lilacs they can absorb more water and last longer.

The best food is flower food: While you may hear rumors about pennies, bleach, and other stuff making flowers last longer, the best choice is actual cut flower food; or so every single flower shop and nursery worker I’ve known has said. If you buy at a flower shop, you usually get a small packet. If you pick flowers at home, you can buy some flower preservatives at a local nursery or home & garden shop.

[image via stock.xchng]

Post from: Blisstree

Keep cut flowers fresh longer

But now that I AM home, my office is very official looking, almost stark in its decor. I wonder what that means…perhaps that I wasn’t serious about my work at the big firm but now that I’m running The Pet Set I am very serious?

Whatever the case, I will always remain a fool for fun office accessories. Check out the neat stuff at Pottery Barn. The items I’ve seen lately should bring some charm to your world, whether it’s on Wall Street or Main Street.

Image: Pottery Barn

Post from: Blisstree

The Home Office.