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ROSES,
SYMBOL OF ELEGANCE, convey so well
your messages of love, appreciation, sympathy or congratulations.
IF YOU RECEIVE YOUR ROSES IN A
VASE OR ARRANGEMENT FROM YOUR FLORIST:
- Be sure that your roses do not run out of
preservative solution in their vase. Check daily, and add preservative
solution to keep the vase full. Any floral foam used must be kept submerged
by adding preservative solution. To make preservative solution, mix the
contents of a flower preservative packet with tap water or distilled water
according to the directions on the package. Avoid using water from a home or
commercial water softener.
IF YOU RECEIVE YOUR ROSES IN A
BOX OR WRAPPED, OUT OF WATER:
- Prepare a clean vase full of flower
preservative solution, mixed accurately according to the directions on the
package. Mix with tap or distilled water, but avoid using water from a home
or commercial water softener. If you are using floral foam in your vase,
before placing the foam in the vase, saturate it in the preservative
solution by allowing it to sink of its own weight in a container of the
solution. When placing the foam in the vase, be sure it is fully submerged
in the preservative solution.
- Remove any foliage that will be under water
after the roses are arranged.
- While holding the stems under water in a sink
or under running water, cut about an inch off each stem with a sharp knife
or shears. Immediately place the rose in the vase of preservative solution.
- After arranging, if possible, place the
arrangement in a cool, dark room or a refrigerator for 2-3 hours (but do not
allow them to freeze).
- When picking a place to display your roses,
choose a cool spot that is out of the sun and out of any drafts, and away
from any heat sources.
- As with roses received in a vase, check the
container daily and add preservative solution as needed to keep the vase
full and any floral foam submerged.
TO HELP ELIMINATE AIR TRAPPED
IN THE STEMS AND TO IMPROVE PRESERVATIVE SOLUTION UPTAKE, CUT ROSE STEMS UNDER
WATER.
IF A ROSE SHOULD WILT
PREMATURELY...
- Premature wilting (within a day or two of
receiving or arranging) may indicate air
trapped in the stem that is preventing preservative solution from moving up
to the flower. Also, there may be a cut or scrape in the back above the
water level. To revive the rose, recut the stem an inch or so from the
bottom or above any damaged area of the stem, and then submerge the entire
rose in a basin or shallow pan of warm water (about 100 degrees Fahrenheit).
Be sure the stem is straightened out and that the end of the stem stays
submerged. It will usually revive within an hour or so and can be replaced
in the arrangement.
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