Don't you just love fresh floral arrangements?  There's something very special about artfully arranged flowers.  They truly bring the beauty of life to any decor.  Your cubicle becomes that much more cozy, your office exudes more joy, any room in your home resonates with more light and love…

…But alas, the magic fades all too soon.  Wouldn't we all like just a bit more time with our lovely natural arrangements?  Yes, yes, we know:  'all good things must come to an end.'  But not yet!  Help keep the dream alive!  Never fear, your crafty and talented Bloem Friends are here with a quick post that has a few easy and practical tips to help you do just that.

• Tools and Materials

• Properly re-cutting stems

• Conditioning

• Arranging

• Water Care

While it's not possible to keep cut flowers around in pristine condition forever, you can prolong their freshness and beauty beyond just the few days many of us may be accustomed to.  That's the *why*:  because we want to keep them around as long as we can.  Then there's the *what*:  a short list of the things you'll need in order to achieve the *how*; the steps you'll take to make those lovelies last.

Hardware and software?!  No, we're not talking about recruiting a team of computer propeller-heads to scientifically program petal-licious DNA with some secret wizardry to give them everlasting life.  No such thing.  We're simply talking about the tools and liquid ingredients you'll employ.

Here's the list of stuff you'll use:

• Vase
• Stem cutters or pruners
• Bucket or pail

• Water
• 7-Up
• Bleach

Now, how to use these things, along with a little bit of why-for sprinkled in for good measure:

This is where you use the gear.  Remember: always take care when cutting and watering.  Be sure your cutters are sufficiently sharp so you're not struggling to make the cuts, and don't use serrated edges, use straight ones.  Not only is this a safety measure to minimize slippage and reduce the likelihood of cutting your precious digits, we also want to be as quick and gentle as possible with our stems so as to not bruise, bend, break, scrape, nick, or otherwise damage them.

Grab the bucket or pail and add water so that you can comfortably cut stems under water without spilling all over the place (just in case, make sure your cell phone, iPod, laptop and other electronics are safely away from your working area).  Recut your stems underwater, and make the cut slanted.  Underwater cutting stops air bubbles from getting trapped in the cut and blocking the stem's absorption of water and nutrients.

Some flowers could stand a good scalding, too.  No, don't yell at them.  That's scolding.  The benefits of boiling water or a candle flame can help certain types of plants and flowers from oozing away precious sap; their lifeblood stays in, kind of like cauterizing a wound.  Ewww and yuck: Nice analogy, Dr. Morbid!  We know, we know.  But the point is to keep things fresh and lovely right?  So just take in the info and go with it.  If you'd like information on what types of flowers fall into this category - like zinnias - don't hesitate to ask!

This step in effect, actually 'trains' the flowers.  It gives them the conditioning needed to most effectively uptake water.  Find a cool dark place to in which to rest rest the stems in lukewarm water for a few hours.

Fill your vase with warm water.  Don't go much warmer than 100° to 110°F.  Arrange the conditioned flowers in the vase of warm water.  If you're storing them, find a cool, well-aired place.  You can even refrigerate them (but not too cold; 38° is about as low as you should go).  If you go the storage route, avoid storing near fruits and veggies; those tasty little things have gas, and that's just rude.  No, seriously: they exude ethylene vapor as they age and that rushes along the decay process.  Minimizing this is what it's all about, after all.

Fresh cut (and properly re-cut) flowers have enough sugars stored up to survive for a while in a vase.  You should change water every two days, taking care to remove any leaves and petals below the water line to prevent decay.  Would you like to try a preservative?  We've got commercial preservatives, but if you're into home remedies, you can try a widely used successful homebrew that includes 7-up and bleach.  The soda give the flowers the sugar buzz they're addicted to, and the bleach effectively controls the build up of bacteria.  Here's the most commonly used formula:

⁃ 1 cup of regular, non-diet 7-Up

⁃ 1 cup of fresh water

⁃ 1/2 teaspoon of bleach

Again, completely changing the water regularly is a good thing because mixed arrangements with multiple varieties may contain some beauties whose sap is toxic to their buddies.  Like any good relationship, we want to keep things non-toxic, so frequent refreshing is the rule.

Factoid:  Why Cut On A Slant?

Great question!  There's two reasons:  First, a slant cut exposes a bit more stem surface for the absorption of water and nutrients.  Second, a slanted surface prevents the stem from resting flat on the bottom of the vase, again, significantly impacting the flower's ability to uptake the goodness needed to keep its beauty.