Keep your Mother's Day flowers fresher for longer - find out how

If you’ve not got the green finger touch, not to worry, Funky Pigeon has shared with us their best tips for keeping those flowers blooming for days extra.

Trim the stems

It can be tempting as soon as your flowers arrive to put them straight into a vase, however, once originally cut the bottoms seal so they need to be cut again in order to allow them to effectively absorb water. Trim 1-2 inches off the end of each steam.

If you cut your stems at an angle, they will be able to take in water much more easily as they aren’t resting flat against the bottom of the vase.

Remove the extra leaves

When trimming your stems make sure to also remove any additional leaves that won’t be seen above the top of the vase.

Extra foliage that is submerged under the water in the vase encourages microbial growth that will clog your flowers’ stems and prevent them from absorbing water. They can also cause the water to become cloudy and unsightly in a clear vase.

Use the flower food

The little sachet that comes attached to the flowers? Use it! Flower food has been formulated with essentials to help your flowers thrive.

Funky Pigeon explains that flower food contains three ingredients:

Citric Acid: Citric acid reduces the water’s pH level. The lower pH allows the water to travel through the stem quickly, preventing wilting.

Sugar: Sugar functions as the actual food in the mix, although the flowers are cut, this food helps the flowers thrive.

Bleach: Although the sugar in flower food nourishes the bouquet, with that nourishment comes bacteria, which will also feed on the sugar water. Bleach kills off this microflora, preventing your arrangement from getting smelly and wilting early.

Make sure you only use as much as directed.

Mother's Day flowers care (Canva)

Choose a Dark Glass or Ceramic Vase

Darker glasses or ceramics will block natural sunlight from hitting the water, which will help delay the stems from decaying and stop the bouquet getting too warm which can lead to wilting.

Keep them cool

Several experiments have found that flowers kept in the fridge overnight last a lot longer than those that are not, however, this isn’t possible for everyone, particularly if you have a rather lush bouquet. Therefore it is recommended that you display your flowers in a cool spot away from direct sunlight. Be sure not to place them over a radiator, a fireplace or on a windowsill.

Change your water regularly

You might think when you pop your flowers in the vase, that is your job done. But no, work still remains if you want your florals to bloom longer.

It is recommended that you change the water every couple of days. This is because as flowers start to die they release a gas called Ethylene- this is the same gas bananas produce that cause them to ripen fruit around them.

This gas causes the flowers to “age” faster causing their lifespan to be shorter, but by regularly changing the water and removing any flowers that look past their peak you will avoid the rest of your bouquet reaching the same fate as fast.

Try using lemonade and bleach

Flower food should be the go to choice for conditioning the water the flowers are in, but as it is recommended that the water is changed regularly, you probably won’t have spare.

A concoction of sugary soda and a bit of bleach will help mimic the contents of flower food. The soda provides the sugar needed to feed the flowers and the bleach keeps the water free from harmful microbes and bacteria.

Use clear sodas such as non-diet lemonade, Funky Pigeon suggests, by mixing one part soda with three parts water. Then add a few drops of bleach. Take precautions not to use too much bleach as it might discolour the flowers’ stems.