On the eve of International Women’s Day, the Rospotrebnadzor office for the Pskov region gave recommendations on choosing fresh flowers and keeping the bouquet fresh.
As the department explained to MK in Pskov, the main indicator of the freshness of a bouquet is its elasticity, since there is enough moisture in an elastic flower. To assess the elasticity of the bud, you need to slightly squeeze it or bend a few petals. In a fresh flower, the petals will immediately return to their original place. Remember: the younger the flower, the longer it will last. If the folded petal hangs like a rag, the bouquet will not survive until tomorrow.
You need to collect a bouquet with the fewest open buds (so it will consist of the youngest flowers). However, this does not apply to chrysanthemums, zinnias and hydrangeas, which remain in the cup for a long time, even with flowering buds.
The leaves of the flowers should be green. The complete absence of leaves indicates that the flowers have been in the store for a long time. In their defense, some sellers claim that they cut off the leaves because the flower needs them.
The cut of the plant, in turn, should not be darkened, and its edges should not be dried. At the same time, it should not be loose – otherwise there has already been a lot of water, which indicates that it is not fresh.
It is worth paying attention to the smell in the store. It should not smell of bleach, mold, or artificial flavors. It is important not to buy ready-made bouquets, but to take 10 minutes to personally compose a gift. Unscrupulous sellers often add old flowers to the bouquet. It is better to take 10 minutes to choose and compile.
When delivering flowers, extreme temperatures that are detrimental to the flowers should be avoided. Before bringing a bouquet of frost to an apartment, it is better to let the flowers get used to the change in temperature in a cool hallway or hallway.
At home, you need to update the cut of flowers, and this should be done under running water. Soft stems should be cut at an angle, and hard stems should be split from below with a knife. The lower leaves should be removed so that they do not rot in the water. It is not recommended to mix several bouquets in one vase.
Thus, roses and lilies should be placed in cool water, after cutting the stamens of the lilies. It is best to pour cold water into a vase with tulips. Gerberas prefer warm, while lilacs and chrysanthemums prefer warm.
Place a vase with a bouquet in a cool place, away from drafts, direct sunlight and batteries. After three days, it is necessary to rinse again and cut the stems of the flowers, rinse the vase and renew the water.
A great way to turn a bouquet into a long liver would be a sprig of arborvitae, placed in a vase. You can also add a powder to the water to prolong the freshness, two tablespoons of sugar (for roses, tulips, carnations, chrysanthemums) and a crushed aspirin tablet (for roses).
