You’ve taken the effort to plant all those lovely flowers. Now that they’re in bloom, why not take full advantage of their temporary euphoric effect? Here’s a review of the basics:


Cutting
Pick flowers in the morning when they are fully hydrated. Avoid using scissors or dull clippers to cut flower stems; they pinch the stem rather than giving a clean, sharp cut. Serrated knives also have no place in the floral tool kit—their cuts always create unwanted debris. The best clippers have pass-by blades that slide past each other as they cut through the stem. Cut all stems at an angle to expose a greater area of the stem for water intake.

Rinsing
When harvesting, take a container of water with you and plunge freshly cut flowers into it as soon as the angled cut is made; a newly cut stem begins to dry over immediately. Allow flowers to draw water in a dark, cool place for several hours prior to arranging. Rinse the stems that exude milky sap to prevent fouling the water.

Arranging
Remove damaged and excessive foliage, and any foliage that will be underwater once the flowers are arranged. A few flowers, such as lilacs and sunflowers, will last much longer if all their foliage is removed.

Using preservatives
If you try using preservatives as “plant food” and the flower dies quickly, try it again with plain water. Some flowers will have a much longer cut life when displayed in vase arrangements without preservatives.

Maintenance
Change the water as often as necessary, usually every two or three days. Re-cut all stems before replacing them in fresh water. Revitalize some flowers that have been out of water and become limp by completely immersing them horizontally in warm water after giving them a fresh angled cut. This works for tulips, roses, and others.


Tips for building a basic floral arrangement:

1. Prepare your space. Sort flowers, fillers and foliage before you begin so that you can create without interruption.

2. It’s more helpful to think of color and/or shape than specific types or numbers of flowers. Be open to making adjustments as you go. Try not to limit yourself with too many rules.

3. Many bouquets are put together roughly the same way: big flowers in the center, filler and delicate flowers second, and foliage third.

4. One hand should hold the main flowers, while the other hand adds elements. Laying down an arrangement midway is a big risk—you may not get the flowers back the way you had them.

5. Try styling flowers in concentric circles differing by color or flower type, like a bull’s eye. You may prefer to have foliage interspersed throughout or added as a filler around the edge of the assortment.


Adapted from Linda Beutler’s Garden to Vase published by Timber Press.