How to Make Flowers and Bouquets Last Longer

by Julia Millay Walsh 0

Valentine's Day has come and gone, but I hope your bouquets are still looking beautiful. To help keep them in fine form throughout the coming week, I asked Michael Gaffney, celebrity floral designer and founder of the American School of Flower Design — who showed us how to DIY a gorgeous Christmas centerpiece — for his tips on extending the life of cut flowers.

Here are his tips:

• Cut the stems at a 45-degree angle with sharp scissors when you first get them and every day after that.
• Dip the flowers upside down in water as soon as you get them.
• Add a drop of bleach to kill bacteria growth from rotting the water transport system.
• Don’t place flowers in direct sunlight or by appliances like computers, which can cause the flowers to dehydrate.
• Keep flowers away from fruit and plants, which give off ethylene. This gas will cause your flowers to wilt too soon.