Keep Flowers Fresher for Longer

No one wants to get a bouquet of wilted flowers. In this article, we’ll walk through tips to keep your flowers looking fresh from storage to delivery.

You’re probably familiar with the old rhyme, April Showers bring May flowers. But if you’re in the floral delivery business, you know that getting beautiful flowers into the hands of your customers has little to do with April showers. There’s a lot that goes into protecting your flowers from seed to vase, so staying on top of the science behind a healthy bouquet can make all the difference in the quality of your flowers.

What’s the most important factor that plays into your flowers’ life? Temperature. The moment a flower is cut and submerged into a floral preservative solution, its means of survival are limited to the food stored in its leaves and petals. Ensuring your flowers are shipped and preserved at a cool temperature conserves the sugars stored in the leaves and stems, which allows the flowers to use less of their resources throughout their journey to the vase. These sugars are critical in supporting the flowers’ healthy growth. Additionally, cold temperatures allow flowers to become less sensitive to harmful chemicals and overall live a longer, healthier life. The graph below shows flowers 24 hours after 5 days of storage at various temperatures and illustrates the substantial decline in the flowers’ life when stored at a high temperature.