6 deadly mistakes when storing Valentine’s Day flowers overnight

We all love the idea of surprising our partners with a beautiful arrangement on Valentine’s Day. We want to keep it all a secret until the big reveal on the and, as grand as this sounds, not everyone knows how to really pull it off! After placing your flower order and collecting or receiving the flower delivery, you need to be really careful about how you store your fresh bouquet. Failing to do so will mean that your flowers will wilt and won’t look nearly as great as they should.

Flowers get cold too

OK, so you might not be the kind of person who believes that plants have feelings and perhaps you don’t spend hours talking to your plants but you need to remember that plants and flowers are sensitive to extreme temperatures. If you leave your bouquet in the garage overnight, in the middle of winter, you can expect the cold to have a negative effect on your precious flowers. Avoid storing them in extremely cold rooms in your home if you want them to look perky the next morning.

Store them in your car

This is hardly better than storing your flowers in the garage itself. If you park your car outside or even in your garage, you can be sure that your bouquet will get cold! If you close the boot of your car and it presses down on the flowers, you are sure to destroy these blooms overnight. Instead, find another secret spot in your home to “hide” your flowers until you are ready to present them.

It’s getting hot in here!

So if cold is bad then hot is good, right?  WRONG! Heaters, fireplaces and any other source of heat can be just as harmful as the cold night air. Don’t place your arrangement anywhere near sources of heat and keep them out of any draughty areas too.

Don’t forget water

Your flowers might be fine for a few minutes without water as they are being transported. You wouldn’t want the interior of your vehicle to get wet along the way. However, as soon as you arrive home, you should make sure to water your flowers immediately. Remember to use lukewarm water, add some flower preserve and don’t fill the vase to the brim! Just add enough water to cover the bottoms of the stem. Covering the entire stem would be like dunking your head in a bucket of water every time you’re thirsty. You only drink through your mouth so you only need to make sure that your lips meet the water. Flowers only absorb water through the bottoms of their stems so make sure they are covered but there’s no need to overdo it. You can also GENTLY mist your bouquet before “tucking” them in for the night. Make sure you don’t add too much water and make sure that the temperatures in that room will not drop too low overnight or you flowers will freeze!

It’s just a short drive from the florist

If you choose to collect your Valentine’s Day flowers from the florist yourself, you need to remember that they need to be transported with care. A professional florist will be well equipped to do just that but your car might not be. Make sure that you have some kind of crate or support to hold your bouquet upright for the ride home. Don’t let them lean over and press against any part of the car. If you are driving alone, slide the front passenger seat all the way back to make room on the floor in the front of your car. That way you can also keep an eye on your flowers as you drive. Remember NOT to let the heater blow directly on your flowers and don’t make your car too hot. No matter how short the drive is – you can really destroy a bouquet if you don’t transport it just right! This is why it’s often a good idea to opt for florist flower delivery instead.

Leave them as they are

A common mistake that many people make is to leave flowers just as they are overnight. So they pop them in a vase of water and think that it’s enough. It’s NOT! If you receive a bouquet wrapped in plastic, you NEED to remove the plastic no matter how lovely it looks. Untie the stems of the flowers before placing them in the vase and, while you’re at it, you should trim the stems and remove any excess leaves. Roses can be wonderfully spruced up by removing the guard petals and gently fluffing them up just before you give them to your Valentine. All of these techniques are really simple and once you get started, you will see that flower care isn’t just for professionals.

Remember:  The better you care for you flowers the night before, the better they will look the next morning! Just consider how your local florist stores flowers overnight in their shop and recreate this flower friendly environment in your own home!