Floral Design with Cara: Keeping Your Hydrangeas Healthy for Longer
By Cara Ewald on September 12, 2014 from Floral Design with Cara
At Blooms, we love hydrangeas. They give such a fresh garden feel to our flower arrangements. Although cut hydrangeas are beautiful in flower arrangements, caring for them can be a little intimidating and even tricky. Here are a few tips to help you keep your hydrangeas fresh looking as long as possible.
Items you will need:.jpg)
- Hydrangeas
- Sharp scissors or pruning shears
- Floral preservative (optional)
- Fresh Clean Water
- Container (vase or other)
Cut your hydrangeas from your own garden or buy them from a reputable florist. Most flowers purchased at farmers markets are usually fresh picked. Florists who offer bulk fresh hydrangeas, normally give you a bucket of water or put the hydrangeas in water tubes for transport. If cutting from your garden, make sure to cut them in the morning or evening and not during the heat of the day. Do not cut the hydrangeas on their nubs, and be sure to cut where the stem is green because new flowers grow on brown stem. Cutting hydrangeas on the nub will prevent them from drinking water. Cut them on a diagonal and place your cut hydrangeas in cool water treated with floral preservative, if available, immediately. Let them sit for an hour or two. While you are waiting, prepare your vase or container. A few weeks ago we covered how to prepare a vase for cut floral arrangements. Click here to read that blog. Now it's time to arrange your hydrangeas. One stem at a time, remove any excess leaves, leaving two to three near the top of the bloom, recut on a diagonal, and arrange in your prepped vase. Place your finished arrangement out of direct sunlight and away from any heat source. Be sure to change the water and recut the stems every few days. If you have ever had the experience of having your cut hydrangeas wilt after a day or two, you will appreciate knowing how to prolong their life as cut flowers in vases and other containers. By following these tips you will be able to have cut hydrangeas last for up to 3-4 weeks. Isn't that much better than 1-2 days?
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