A Guide to Keeping Your Flowers Flourishing
Whether you’ve decided to plant your own flowers or display cut flowers in your home, you’ll want them to look beautiful for as long as possible. Unfortunately, cut flowers will naturally have a limited life, though you can maximize this with a bit of care. There are also a few things you can do to improve the odds of a long and healthy life for your houseplants.
Cut Flower Care Tips
If you’re displaying cut flowers in your home, the most important thing to do that will keep your flowers fresh for longer is to cut the stems as soon as you bring them into your home. Flower stems have a vascular system that draws in water and nutrients to feed the blooms, but when the end of the stem dries out, this flow is cut off; cutting them stems opens it up again so water can be absorbed. Once you cut your flower stems, you’ll want to quickly place them in cool water to prevent air bubbles from forming in the stems. Any leaves that are under the waterline of your vase should be removed right away; leaves left in vase water will rot and then spread bacteria to the blooms, which kills them faster. You should also change the water every three days and wash out the vase to reduce the risk of bacterial growth.
Best Places to Place Your Cut Flowers
Where you place your cut flowers also plays a role in how long they last after they’ve been cut. Flowers last longer in a room with a cooler temperature. If it’s too hot or too cold, then you’ll dehydrate your flowers too fast. They should be kept away from direct sunlight, open windows, or appliances that generate heat. Another thing you should keep your flower bouquet away from is fruit: Ripening fruits release small amounts of ethylene gas that reduce floral longevity, causing them to wilt faster.
Easiest Indoor Flowers to Care For
Cut flowers aren’t the only kinds of flowers that can brighten up your home. You could also choose to grow your own flowers and take care of them inside so they’re in a warm place all year round. Not all flowers are the same, though; some flowers require intensive care that may not work for everybody, and that’s why it’s important to do your research before you purchase flowering plants to adorn your space.
A peace lily is a good choice if you often forget to water your plants. It doesn’t get thirsty very often, and when it does, it droops just enough for you to take notice; it perks back up after it gets water again. You only need to water it once a week to give your lily the best chance at a long and healthy life indoors. Similarly, the kalanchoe, a flowering succulent, also does not need water very often. In fact, it hates soggy soil, so you don’t have to water it as often as other plants and it will still bloom for a long time.
If you’ve decided to take care of an indoor plant, there are a variety of different plants that will suit your needs, even if you wouldn’t describe yourself as somebody who has a green thumb. Anthurium is considered one of the best indoor plants for beginners, as it flowers for a long period of time and is fairly easy to grow. Beginners also often like amaryllis plants; they’re easy to grow from bulbs if you use potting mix instead of garden soil, and you can keep them in sunlight for long periods of time, unlike some other plants.