What Causes Cut Flowers to Wilt?
Hello, I’m Donna Emery from Glover Nursery in West Jordan, Utah. What causes cut flowers to wilt? Two major problems: One is air in the stem, and the other is bacteria blocking the stem so the flower can’t take up water. The way to avoid air in the stem is to make a clean cut – preferably underwater or at least near water. So, as soon as I make that cut with my wet knife, I can just pop it right into the vase. The vase I’ve chosen is clean – it should be clean enough to drink out of – that will help retard the growth of bacteria; so will stripping off lower leaves after you’ve made the cut, the initial cut. And, plop it immediately into water. You should cut flowers from your garden in the early morning or the late evening. That is when they are likely to be the most – their stems will be the most full of water. Don’t want to leave that cut stem in there. Stems and foliage actually encourage bacterial growth, which is the second problem with cut flowers wilting. So, change the water every day. You can use a commercial floral preservative that goes in the water; you can make your own. But, I find that if you change the water every day, that’s just as good. This is Donna Emery from Glover Nursery.