Those who’ve cut flowers and placed them in a vase often want to know how long cut flowers last. The answer is that it depends on various factors, such as harvest stage, temperature, variety, cleanliness and time.

Harvest Stage

The majority of flowers may be picked prior to fully opening, and this is ideal, because afterwards they’ll continue opening in water. Collecting the flower at the early most optimal stage provides an end user with extended vase life when compared to waiting for the flower to completely open. There are also floral preservatives that can assist you since they are made with sugar, which is responsible for sustaining flowers while they continue opening and contributes to their vibrant coloration.

Temperature

Flowers which have sustained heat exposure from direct sunlight after being harvested can suffer. Many may be stored within coolers so that their vase life can be prolonged, and most will thrive when placed in rooms that are air conditioned and away from direct sun rays.

Variety

While some flowers will last about a day, others may last up to three weeks. This is true even within the same species, which highlights the significant vase life differences among various plant cultivars. For instance, sunflowers that have a single stem will often last a few days longer when compared to branching sunflowers, but the good news is that there are numerous products on the market which are designed to boost vase life.

Cleanliness

When a flower is cut, it will absorb water via its stems. Since bacteria are present in the liquid, it may clog them, which lowers the water uptake and leads to premature wilting. As a consequence, it is essential to lower the incidence of bacterium contamination, meaning that anything which comes into contact with the flowers has to be exceptionally clean, whether it is water, clippers, vases or buckets.

Scrub everything prior to use with bleach and soap, and give the tools time to dry out within the sun. Should the stems become dirty, which is common after excessive rain, allow its soil to wash off within your picking bucket, and then move your stems to another bucket with clean solution. Floral preservatives are a necessity since they contain biocides which are capable of killing bacteria and thus may be applied in a situation where your flowers aren’t lasting that long.

Time

The time during the day when harvesting takes place is important. Ideally, plants should be collected during the evening or morning, because if you pick them during mid-day, when the temperatures tend to be the highest, it will be more challenging for flower stems to absorb water, which can substantially shorten their vase life.

While flower growers often joke that the best vase life for the plants they sell is six days, since customers are more likely to return and buy more, they can last much longer by following the tips above.