Flower Care
Before becoming a florist bouquets were very alien to me. What vase should I choose? How much stem should I trim off? Do they like glaring sunlight or a dark room? Should I undo the twine? In the end I would hack off the stems, undo the twine, shove them in a vase and hope for the best. Thankfully I now have my flower care down to T, and although some steps seem incredibly simple to me now, I know that a younger me would have appreciated a guided instruction. For those un-greenfingered amongst us, this is for you. Of course some of it is purely preference, so as always I encourage you to get creative.
Find me a vase
Find a clean vase that is roughly 1/3 of the total height of the arrangement. Next, in most cases you want to find the sweet spot where the neck of the vase meets the lowest part of the arrangement. You might need to trim the stems here. Keep your bouquet ties unless the neck of the vase fully supports the binding point, as this is what keeps your arrangement together and looking heavenly.
Give me a home
Using a sharp pair of scissors or a knife, cut your stems to size or give them a 1cm refresh trim and pop them into the vase with lots of fresh water. Take out any foliage below water level and make sure the ends of the stems are fully submerged. Place your arrangement in a cool spot, out of direct sunlight and away from any central heating, draughts or ripening fruit.
Keep me clean
Check out the water levels daily, you will be surprised how much your flowers will drink. Change your vase water every couple of days to avoid a build up of bacteria. Each time you change the water give the stems a small trim. Throughout the week remove any dying flowers from your arrangement to keep the water as clean as possible.