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Dear Bridget, I am planning centerpiece decorations. I’d like to plant wheat grass in terra cotta pots and take Gerbera daisies and stand them up amongst the wheat grass. How can I get the daises to stay straight? Is it okay to use floral wire inserted in the stems? Should each daisy have a water source (maybe the tubes used by florists) or would the wire impede the water from getting through? We’re planning this for California (Sacramento area) on July 3rd, so it will be warm. I’m hoping my plan for the floral wire will work! What do you think, or do you have other suggestions? I’d appreciate your advice! – Mashelle – Elk Grove, CA
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Mashelle, Great idea! You really should use the water pics since it will be hot and they will last hours longer with the water source. If you can find theRead more »
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Dear Bridget, I want to arrange a flower, only one (big daisy) inside the water in a bowl, I don’t want it to float, shall I put a weight on it? what kind of weight? – Monica – Washington, DC
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Monica, The flower won’t last long while submerged. It needs a water source, yes, but not immersion in water for more than a few hours. It will start to decay.Read more »
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I’m looking for a web site where I can type in a certain flower and see what it looks like…Is there one? Thx! – Donna – Westerly, RI
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Donna, Our own web site may have what your looking for:Ð(click here). Otherwise, you might Goggle seach by flower name and hunt for photos. What specific flowers were you lookingRead more »
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Dear Bridget, What is the actual dying process of cut flowers? For example, is it because they can’t sustain themselves without the food they get from photosynthesis. – Frances – Sydney, NSW
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Frances, Yes, you are correct in that the senescence (dying and death) of flowers is related to their lack of carbohydrates. Nothing substitutes for the sugars produced by the plant;Read more »
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Dear Bridget, What effect do vinegar and bleach have on life cut flowers? – Clara – Chicago, IL
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Clara, Flowers have a pre-set or pre-determined life that is established by the plant (or its genetics). Some flowers last a day while others may last up to several monthsRead more »
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Dear Bridget, I am a 7th grader and in my science class, we are studying the scientific method. My teacher went online and saw that someone asked about how she can get her flowers to live longer and look better. There were multiple answers to her question, but a lot of them said either aspirin, a pinch of sugar, or changing the water every day would help. So we did the scientific method and checked out if the aspirin really worked or not. Turns out the flower without the aspirin (the control) did better than the one with aspirin (independent variable). I want to do this experiment at home, only instead of aspirin, I will see if a pinch of sugar works. Do you think it will work? – Taylor – Berkely, CA
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Taylor, The scientific method is very important and something I use in my work very often. I’m glad you’re learning it and how to use it. I’m not surprised toRead more »
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Dear Bridget, I’m doing a science fair experiment and I’m using roses, tulips and carnation to change there color but im afraid they’ll die because my cousin is doing the same project I am and his rose died. Is there something wrong with the flower that it dies, or is roses sensitive to color. Thanks – Theresa – Chicago, IL
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Theresa, You’ve chosen an interesting project! You can change the color of many light-colored (white, beige, pale yellow) flowers by adding food color to the water in the vase. However,Read more »
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Dear Bridget, I’ve heard from multiple people that putting pennies in your flower water will keep them alive longer,Is this true? Thanks! – Jenny – Heath, OH
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Jenny, Pennies used to have enough copper in them to help inhibit the growth of bacteria and fungi. Following is a brief chronology of the metal composition of the centRead more »
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Dear Bridget, My name is Phyllis. I’m getting married July 4th and I’m having a red, white and blue wedding. I need help with my flowers what kind should I use at these time of the year? I’m also having a outdoor BBQ And Pool party what kind of flowers should I us on the tables outside? Thank you for any help you can give me. – Phyllis – Lilesville, NC
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Phyllis, You should use red, white, and blue (of course)! One idea is Jill’s Flower Flag. I like red standard carnations combined with dark blue statice and white chrysanthemums. You couldRead more »
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Dear Bridget, I plan to make centerpieces in holly (Ilex aquifolium) but don’t know the best, practical way to keep them moist for as long as possible, say, 4 weeks. I know this isn’t easy, particularly as they will also have a candle, which when lit will tend to dry them out even more. Maybe cutting the stems diagonally and sealing them with glycerine – would it suffice or would they still need regular spraying? Can you help? Thanks! – Joao
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Joao, Holly will last for a few weeks (about 2 has been my experience). Sealing won’t help, and it will likely shorten the life. I would use floral foam soakedRead more »
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