The big day is almost here: Valentine's Day! The day when dozens of roses pass between loved ones. I am so excited to be part of this wonderful tradition! Today, I want to offer you a few tips on how to make the roses from your Market Florist last longer and look better.

Be sure to follow these steps in order, since roses can be very sensitive.

1. Remove any lower leaves or any leaves with black, brown or moldy spots. If you are mixing the roses with greens from your Market Florist or from your garden, you may consider removing all the leaves from the roses; it’s up to you. This is what I normally do, because the rose leaves will often start to dry and curl before the rose itself and before other greenery. Removing the leaves keeps the whole arrangement looking fresher longer.

2. Remove any outer rose petals that are bruised, brown or torn. Simply grip the petal you want to remove near the base using your thumb and forefinger (thumb inside the petal) and pull gently outward and down until you feel the petal pop off.

3. Cut at least an inch off of the stems while holding them under water, hot water if possible. This prevents the rose from forming a seal that blocks water from reaching the flower head, which can lead to a drooping rose. Make an angled cut with sharp shears to give the rose maximum capacity to drink.

4. Immediately plunge the roses into a vase filled with fresh, clear water. If you need to shorten the stem while arranging, make sure to follow the previous step.

5. Every other day, remove your roses, wash the vase, replace the water, remove and damaged spots, as suggested above, re-cut the stems and return to their vase.

If you can pull yourself away from the romantic dinner for just a few minutes and follow these simple steps, your roses will reward you for many days to come.

If you haven’t made plans for your loved one, you still have time! Your Market Florist would be happy to help – just stop on by!

As your Market Florist, I want to be sure you are satisfied with the quality of the flowers and plants you purchase. So when I hear, "I took my flowers home and the next day they wilted! I put them in water, so what happened?" I want to offer solutions! Here's some advice that may help you avoid disappointment.
 
One of the not-so-secret secrets to keeping flowers alive is simply trimming the stems. This happens when the flowers reach Market of Choice, regardless of whether they are dry shipped or arrive in water. This ensures that the flowers’ conduits are open and working properly, allowing them to drink in the fresh water they’re given when they arrive.
 
Similarly, when you buy flowers from your Market Florist and transport them home in their plastic sleeve, the tips of the stems can dry out in transit. Whether you choose to arrange the flowers or just plop them in a vase when you get home, their stems should be cut again. Trimming at least an inch is best, if you can spare the length.
 
If your flowers remain in the vase for two days or more, trim the ends every couple of days to keep them healthy. Ideally, you should remove the arrangement from its vase, grip it 4 to 5 inches from the stem ends, and trim off the last inch.

Make sure to cut off any brown or mushy stems to prevent them from contaminating the rest of the arrangement. Remove these flowers entirely, if needed. Then rinse and, if necessary, scrub the vase and refill with fresh water before replacing the arrangement.
 
Following these tips closely replicates the nourishment system that flowers have before they're cut, lengthening their life in the vase. It also extends your enjoyment and your investment!

Check out my blog before Valentine's Day to find tips on rose care for the big day!
 

In a difficult economy, why should you allow yourself the luxury of a fresh bunch of tulips? My response would be, of course, why shouldn’t you?

Tulips are actually relatively inexpensive, easy to arrange and long lasting. In the right conditions, a tulip arrangement can last for over a week. According to the Flower Council of Holland, Americans spend an average of $31 on flowers annually compared to Switzerland, where average annual spending is $100. For about the price of a daily 16 oz. vanilla latte, you can buy a bunch of five local, fresh tulips, which can provide visual joy for days.

Personally, I love five or 10 tulips alone, in the right-sized container. Proportion is everything. If you choose the right container, a day or two’s vase “growth” may not be noticeable, and may in fact be elegant, giving a touch more wild earthiness to the appearance of the arrangement. Think creatively. It doesn’t have to be a store-bought vase; all kinds of containers work great when wrapped with fabric, bound with moss, set into a hollowed fruit – the possibilities abound. As long as it is properly lined with plastic or glass, anything can be the base of an eye-catching arrangement.

If you are not a regular tulip buyer, I invite you to give it a try. Just last year, I began taking tulips to friends and relatives, and was amazed to see the joy that they could bring by spending less than $5! Wrapped with paper and tied with a simple ribbon, a bunch of fresh, local tulips makes anyone’s day – even your own!

My customers often ask me the best way to care for their tulips, or why theirs didn’t perform well in their home. Here are some guidelines that may help:

• When you buy the tulips, don’t leave them out of water for long. If you have many other errands to run after their purchase, make sure they are in a cool place. One of my tricks is to keep a camping cooler in my trunk, which I use for frozen groceries, but I also carry a square-bottomed box with a generic plastic vase and a jug of water. In a pinch, you can easily transport flowers this way in the cool months, or move the cooler to your back seat on warmer days.

• Upon arriving home, cut a good inch off the stems with sharp scissors or a knife, and either arrange or put in water for later arrangement. This step is essential to reopen the conduits for water to travel up to the tulip heads.

• Do not place tulips in a kitchen near fruits or vegetables, which give off ethylene gas that shortens the life of flowers. Make sure they are displayed away from a direct-heat source, including appliances and electronics like TVs, which become very warm and will shorten your tulips’ vase life.

• If you are combining your tulips with other flowers in an arrangement, remember that tulips will continue to “grow” in the vase, sometimes as much as the length of the head of the tulip per day, so the arrangement will need daily care to stay well proportioned. If you plan to mix daffodils with tulips, soak the daffodils alone for three hours after cutting their stems to allow the “sap” to rinse out, as it is toxic to other flowers and will poison your arrangement otherwise.

• Tulips will open faster in warmer environments, so if you are buying them for an upcoming event, keep them on your porch or other cool place until you are ready for them to come into fullness.

• Tulips don’t need fresh flower food, such as you find in the little packets. Just clean, fresh water is best. Change the water each time you re-cut the stems, or more often, to slow bacterial growth in the water and extend vase life. If your tulips are looking good but have been in the vase a few days, scrub out the inside of the container and give it a good rinse.
Check my blog regularly for more clever ideas as the tulip season really gets rolling, or visit your Market to see fresh displays for yourself.