Keep your spring tulips in a vase looking fresh longer with these easy tips and tricks to help you keep tulips from drooping!
If you follow me on Instagram you saw that my sweet husband surprised me with a bouquet of tulips last Friday. I love, love, love tulips and probably love them even more so this year because I’m so looking forward to Spring (we have 7″ of snow and an ice storm happening as I write this!) While I appreciate the charm of a drooping, swinging tulip I know many prefer their tulips not to droop (and in many arrangements they look better standing tall) so I thought I’d share my tips to care for tulips in a vase, keep tulips from drooping and make cut tulips last!
How to Care for Tulips in a Vase
Start Fresh
First and foremost start with fresh blooms. Fresh cut tulips should have bright green stems that feel crisp to the touch. Nothing is going to help your tulips avoid dropping if you start with old flowers that have already taken a turn for the worse.
Choose the Right Vase
When displaying tulips in a vase, choosing the right vase can make a big difference in whether they will droop or not. Choose a vase that is tall enough to offer the tulips support. Avoid vases that curve outward at the top if you want your tulips to stay upright. As you can see below, if you use a wide topped vase the tulips will follow that arch. Fill your vase with clean cold water. (It’s often said that dropping a penny made prior to 1981 will help keep the stems upright due to the copper in the water…I can’t say for sure that it will work but I do it out of habit just in case!)
How to Keep Tulips from Drooping
Recut the Stems
Recut the stems at least an inch from the previous cut while holding underwater. Remove all leaves that will be under the waterline in your vase and put in the vase while still in the florist wrap, this will offer support to your tulips as they “drink” up the water the first few hours. If your blooms were loose, gently wrap them in plastic wrap to keep them upright.
Condition the Stems
Allow your tulips to remain the vase, wrapped, for 5 hours or overnight. Conditioning the stems in this way allows them to fill with water while maintaining that upright position and making it more likely they will stand upright longer.
If All Else Fails…
If all else fails you have the option of threading floral wire up through the stem to the base of the flower (carefully!!) Coil the excess at the bottom of the stem into a spiral for stability. Gently bend the flower where you want it and it should hold it’s shape.
How to Make Cut Tulips Last
Maintain the Arrangement
Keep your tulips out of direct sunlight (they will turn towards the sun!) and change the water daily.
Snip the stems about 1/2 inch every 3 days to help them continue to keep fresh.
Have you gotten your first bouquet of tulips yet this year? Isn’t it amazing just how many different colors they come in? What’s your favorite?
For more tips like this, check out my secret for keeping Hydrangeas fresh and how to arrange a grocery store bouquet like a pro!
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