You buy a fresh bunch of flowers and place them in a vase with some water. Next thing you know they’re almost dead! Is this recognizable for you? Then this article is for you, because we explain how it happens, and how to bring dying flowers back to life!
How does it happen?
There are various reasons why flowers die. Usually this has to do with water, bacteria or wilting. We’ll outline three scenarios:
- After purchasing the flowers, you forgot to cut a cm of the stems before placing them in a vase. The bottom of the stems are often a bit dried out, so they can’t absorb enough water.
- The water in the vase is dirty. If the water the flowers stand in is old, bacteria can multiply very quickly. These bacteria attack the stems, and this causes that the flowers can’t drink as much and will dry out faster.
- A few of the stems, flowers or leaves are dehydrated. As a result, the flowers can hardly absorb more water, and the dried out flowers and leaves emit gases that cause more wilting.
Also see: 4 reasons to buy flowers more often
How to bring dying flowers back to life
Remove the flowers from the vase and discard the wilted flowers and dried leaves. Cut a cm from the bottom of the stem of the remaining flowers, at an oblique angle. Then clean your vase well and put some fresh water in it. Immediately add a drop of bleach, to inhibit bacterial growth. This way your flowers will shine in no time!
But remember: one flower is not the other, and some remain beautiful longer than others. For example, anthurium cut flowers can stay nice for two to three weeks! Read about the care of this exotic flower via this link.
