OUR TOP TIPS ON CARING FOR YOUR BOUQUETS
At Zing Flowers, our bouquets are beautifully arranged by hand before being gift-wrapped in cellophane. If you order our lovely Letterbox Flowers, you can arrange the blooms yourself!
Whatever you order, all flowers need care and attention, so we’ve prepared some top tips to help you care for your arrangement.
1. Start with a clean vase
Choose a vase to place your flowers in – if you haven’t got one, you can add a vase to your Zing Flowers order! Make sure you clean it thoroughly with hot water and washing up liquid, or rinse with water and a tablespoon of bleach. This will eradicate any bacteria on the inside of the vase and will help your flowers live longer.
2. Remove rose guard petals
When you receive a flower delivery, you may notice that some of the outer petals aren’t quite as colourful or attractive as the rest. This is because they’re ‘guard petals’ - petals left on the bud to protect your flowers as they travel. When you buy flowers from a local florist, it’s likely that they have already had their guard petals removed for display, as they won’t need to travel. However, at Zing Flowers we strive to keep each stem as safe as possible during delivery, so we leave these petals on for you to remove.
Guard petals normally have a hint of green or brown and can be mistaken for wilting or dying petals. They have no reflection on the health of the rest of the flower, so carefully place your index finger on the inside of the guard petal and press down softly to peal the petal away from the rest of the flower.
3. Trim stems
When unwrapping your flowers, be sure to trim at least an inch off the stems before placing them in water. Making a fresh cut at a diagonal angle will allow the stems absorb water more efficiently.
Removing Leaves
Be sure to carefully remove any leaves that fall below the water line, as they will quickly start to rot. This will keep the water in the vase cleaner and add to the shelf life of your flowers.
5. Flower Food
All our flowers arrive with a sachet of flower food to help keep your blooms fresh for as long as possible. Pop this in a vase filled with fresh water, then leave this to sit until the water gets to room temperature.
6. Watering
Be sure to keep water fresh, changing every few days or as soon as it looks cloudy. Whenever you change your water, repeat step 3 and trim about an inch off your stems. This will unblock the end of the stems which may have collected bacteria and will help them take in water more efficiently.
7. Place your flowers carefully
The best place to keep your flowers is in a cool location, away from direct sources of sunlight or heat. Also, be sure to avoid placing them near fruit, which releases ethylene gas as it ripens and poisons the flowers.
We hope you find these tips helpful when caring for your flowers. If you are looking for more information, check out our frequently asked questions.