After buying flowers, they can stand in a vase for a long time, maintaining their original appearance. To do this, you need to know how to trim flowers so that it does not provoke their rapid wilting. After all, if this is done incorrectly, the plants will lack nutrients and will not be able to fully absorb water. This will ultimately result in them retaining freshness for only a few days.
Trimming Rules
How to trim flowers after buying them? When you buy them at the salon, the florist trims the stems in advance. However, when the bouquet is already delivered home, before putting it in a vase, you need to trim the stems again so that they can moisturize. It is advisable to do this in the morning. This is especially true on hot days. After all, during the day, the temperature is slightly higher, and the plants quickly lose moisture. If trimming is done during the day, the flower may not have time to restore its water balance.
How to Perform Trimming
To understand how to trim flowers correctly, you need to use the following florist tips:
- The cut is made at an angle. Each stem in the bouquet needs to be cut at a 45-degree angle. This technique maximally increases the cross-sectional area of the stem, allowing it to absorb more water.
- Use a sharp tool. For trimming, choose a sharp knife or secateurs. If the tool is dull, it can crush the stem, thereby damaging the water absorption system.
- Under a stream of water. When making the cut, the stems should be kept underwater. After all, at the moment of cutting, access to water is blocked. If air gets into the stem at this moment, an airlock may form inside. In the future, it will become a barrier to the movement of water. If the plant is underwater at the time of cutting, everything will go more or less smoothly and less dangerously for the flower's health.
This is the general technique for trimming stems for most plants. However, there are exceptions:
- Chrysanthemum and lilac. In this case, there is no need to make a straight and precise cut. On the contrary, you need to tear off the tips of the stem with your hands to create a brush at the end. This method will increase the water absorption area.
- Tulips, irises, lotuses, and hyacinths. These plants have watery stems. To prolong their storage life, it is necessary to pierce the stems along their entire length. In this case, there will be no capillary blockage.
- Lilies and hydrangeas. They need to be trimmed and then held over a hot frying pan for some time. After this procedure, they can be placed in a vase with water.
- Peonies. These plants need to be treated very carefully during trimming, as they are quite fragile. Therefore, the cut is made with a sharp tool and very gently.
How often do you need to trim flowers? In general, trimming should be done once every 2-4 days by 2-3 cm. For those flowers that are particularly susceptible to bacterial action, this should be done every day. At the same time, do not forget to change the water in the vase. Special attention should be paid to such plants as:
- dahlias;
- delphiniums;
- amaryllises.
These plants have hollow stems, and to fill them with moisture, the flowers need to be turned upside down and water poured into them through the lower part of the stem. When water enters the stem, it will make it elastic. To prevent the water from leaking back, the cut ends can be plugged with cotton pads, and only then all the flowers should be placed in a vase. In general, flowers can stay in a vase for about a week. But if you want to extend their freshness even longer, trim them very short.
It is also important to understand that trimming is only one factor in caring for cut flower bouquets. Full care also involves the following actions:
- the temperature of the room where the flowers are kept should be between 18-20 degrees Celsius;
- a tablet of aspirin should be thrown into the water as a nutrient, which will help reduce the amount of pathogenic microflora;
- fruits should not be placed near the flowers, as they emit ethylene, which contributes to the rapid wilting of flowers.
If you follow all these recommendations, you will be able to maximize the freshness and original appearance of the flowers and enjoy their beauty and magnificent aroma for a long time.
