General Chat

Well, considering tulips are almost my favouite cut flowers, I was hoping I would have some to look aftef this weekend. They were on offer at our local shop next to all the Valentine bouquets but for some reason o.h. seemed not to notice when he went shopping! I did get chocs on a small scale and he said he got those at a special chocolate shop when we were away last week but he's always got me flowers before too :o ((

Lizx

S, if you can find sort of flourescent coloured straws so much the better and they are easy to wipe clean or replace.

P*S*D... Hi,

What another good idea for using straws! Just thinking how much that might help remind people to turn the light off when leaving (especially if you used a contrasting colour)
Should we start a 'Good Ideas' thread ?


Wendy...Hi,

I'm taking all these tips on-board ... you've probably guessed I'm not particularly green-fingured! I didn't know about daffodils !
I'm actually relieved that more people than me have had misbehaving tulips!

Thanks again
:-)

Solrosen, yes I did that with thicker stemmed gerberas as they wilt down the stem. I use the larger coloured straws. I was lucky last year and a few times found bouquets including huge hyacinth flowers in the reduced area at Tescos.

Another good use for drinking straws is to thread the string of a bathroom light switch and or shower string through a toning straw then re add the knobbly bit on the bottom, the string stays clean.

Lizx

years ago when i did flower arranging the tulips would always be in a different way daily.i used to arrange them on a pin holder,and they still went awry.i took photos at the time to show our class at college.

when putting any flowers in water,whether from garden or florist,always re cut the stem on an angle so that they can take up water ,if the stem is cut straight across it sit on the bottom of vase and cant drink
also remove all foliage below waterline that stops water going green and smelly.
when putting chrysanths in water dont crush stems as that will cause the same thing.just cut up the stem slightly.but if you angle the cut anyway it wont be necessary to do anything to the stems.
and daffs are better on their own,they can cause the other flowers in the vase to die.

Shirley... that sounds feasible to me.

Think the problem with Daffs and Tulips is they aren't meant to be cut flowers .

That's what a friend who is a florist told me yonks ago .

Morning Dermot :-)

Thank you for this tip. I would imagine it might stop the water from becoming pungent also.

Sounds like your Granny and mine might have got along!!

A spoonful of Bleach added to water prolongs plant/flower life.

*My granny suggested this many years ago.

Hi Everyone

Thank you all for responding to my call for help and for all the good tips! It just shows that we are never too old to learn!
I had never heard of the piercing before and GB thanks for the link - very informative. I read on this that tulips carry on growing - that could also explain quite a bit.
P*S*D - I like your idea also .... even if the stems are a bit thick to feed through the straw, I suppose cutting the straw lengthways and slotting it onto the stem would give that extra support.

Once again, GR-Gems, thank you !!

Lots of useful info, thanks for that, GB I love tulips, sometimes if they start drooping, I put the stems through a drinking straw and position them at the back to retain some height in the arrangement and make the flowers last longer. I have tried the piercing method but didn't have a lot of success.

Lizx

http://www.britinfo.net/florists/cut-flowers.htm

Not tried it but lemonade added to the water !!

Ann is right. Piercing the stem about half an inch below the flower head with a thin needle before you put them in water will keep the stems straight.

Kath. x

Have been told that if you pierce right through the stem just below the flower head with a thin needle (then pull it out) , this will help keep the stems straight.

Haven't tried it myself though.

EDIT: Oops, should have refreshed the page - Ann's beaten me to it.

Have you tried piercing the stems just below the flower head? This does seem to work sometimes.

My bunch of tulips have gone and gotten a mind of their own!
I put them neatly in a suitable vase and 3 days later they are all over the place, heads down and petals open. They are not near any heat source, not in the window and not in the dark. They have been fed and have got water. What am I doing wrong?? - or is it the same for everyone?
Any ideas or intructions for the next bunch?

Thanks.... (retiring for the night, now... but will check-in tomorrow)