Nothing adds charm to a room than freshly cut flowers such as roses. Whether the flowers are a gift, cut from your own garden, or purchased from a flower shop, we all want them to last as long as possible. Fortunately, roses and other flowers can be preserved so that 5hey will last much longer allowing you to enjoy the beauty and sweet aroma much longer.

Below you will find a number of helpful tips on preserving roses and other elegant flowers:

Materials: To preserve your flowers, you will need the following items: vase, small bucket, water, bleach, 7-Up, and sharp scissors.

Cut Flowers: Using your scissors, snip the stem of the flower on an angle. As you cut each flower, place them in a bucket of warm water. Cutting the flowers on an angle (slant) will make it easier for the uptake of water and will prevent air bubbles which can block the uptake of water and food. If you have a flower such as zinnia that contains nutrient rich sap in the stem, you can prevent the sap from leaking out of the stem by putting the stem in boiling water for about 15 seconds. After the stems have been properly cut, remove any dead and bruised leaves and foliage that would be sitting in the water to prevent decay in the water.

Flower Conditioning: Before you arrange your flowers, you need to condition them. You do this by placing the stems in cool water for a couple of hours in a cool and dark spot so that they can absorb the water.

Prepare Vase Water: Freshly cut flowers have sufficient stored sugars to live in a vase; however, if you want to extend their life, you must add a preservative to the water. There are home made preservatives you can buy, but you can also make a homemade preservative which is much more effective at extending the flowers life. One such formula includes mixing a cup of regular 7-Up with 1 cup of water, and then add a half a teaspoon of bleach to the mixture. Stir well. If you require more liquid for the vase, just double up on the mixture until you get the amount that you need to adequately fill the vase. The bleach helps prevent bacteria growth.

Flower Arrangement: Once the flowers have been properly conditioned and the water prepared and put in the vase, you can place the flowers in the vase and begin to arrange them. A mix of colors such as red roses with white flowers looks quite elegant. Bright colors really add charm to a room. You can be as creative as you like.

You can help extend the life of flowers by changing the water mixture every couple of days. As well, make sure the flowers are not in a spot that is too hot. It is also important to be aware that flowers with hollow stems do not last as long. When you implement a few easy measures to preserve your flowers you can greatly extend the life of the flowers which means you will have more time to enjoy the beautiful decorative flowers.

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