Ensuring vase life longevity for your peonies

Flowers bring so much joy to so many people. Whether you buy in or use home grown blooms, the process from choosing the flowers to pick in your garden, cutting the lengths, getting creative with colour, shape and texture in the vase and finding just the right spot gives you time to truly enjoy your flowers.

Ensuring your flowers remain beautifully fresh for as long as possible is a must. 

1/ If you are picking up peonies for a special event and have to travel, use buckets filled with plenty of cold water and add ice, particularly if it is a hot day.  Make sure your car has the air conditioning on low to create a cool travel space.  Sun and heat are not so good.

2/ Once at home, pick a vase which suits the flower or the look you like.  I have a vase which is tall a narrow neck.  It hold the stems perfectly.  Peonies have a long stem and each flower type will have a different length, so if you plan to mix bunches, keep this in mind. 

3/ Clean your vase with hot soapy water and rinse so it is squeaky clean. 

4/ Snip the stems with clean secateurs on the diagnol. 

5/ Use fresh, clean water to fill.  If it is a hot day, I often add a few cubes of ice as well.  The flowers love chilled water.  Another thing to consider is using flower food.  We don’t use this with our peonies, but it is also a tried and tested method.

6/ Choose a spot out of direct sunlight.  Most floral shops have a cool room where they store their blooms.  Although this is not practical in a residential setting, be aware of the sun and how it moves throughout the day in the place you place your flowers.

7/ Refresh the vase water every day, snip the flower ends and edit the arrangement.  Some flowers just last longer than others, so to keep your vase looking good pick out the flowers that have gone, and replace with new flowers or move into a smaller vase.

I hope you have enjoyed reading about how to get the most out of your beautiful blooms.

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 Have a lovely day.

Chris x