Vase Life of My Favorite Bouquet Botanicals
In my garden, I snip with abandon. And when my friends visit, I encourage them to do the same. It is a cutting garden, after all. Everything is grown to be anticipated, admired, photographed, harvested and appreciated elsewhere. To be given a job far more important than adorning my garden; to adorn my home or the home of someone I care about. With this in mind, I recently compiled an at-a-glance list of the vase life ranges for all the botanicals I grow specifically for use in floral arrangements and bouquets. While I had only intended it for my own personal use, I thought it might be useful to you as well, so here it is:
Anemone — 7–9 days
Bee Balm — 7-10 days
Calendula — 5-7 days
China Aster — 7-10 days
Chrysanthemum* — 2 weeks or more
Cosmos — 3-5 days
Cottage rose — 5 days, at most
Dahlia** — 5 days, at most
Echinacea — 7-10 days
Eucalyptus — 2 weeks+
Fennel — 5-7 days
Feverfew — 5-7 days
Geranium — 2 weeks or more!
Hellebore — 5 days
Hydrangea — 5-9 days
Lamb’s ear — 4-5 days
Lavender — 5-7 days
Lemon balm — 2-3 days
Lisianthus — up to two weeks
Mint — 7-10 days
Narcissus* — 5-7 days
Nasturtium — a week+
Oregano* — 7-10 days
Peony — 5-7 days
Poppy — 1-3 days, at most
Ranunculus — 7-10 days
Rosemary — 2 weeks+
Sage — 7-10 days
Snapdragon — 7-10 days
Stock* — 5-7 days
Strawflower — 1 week+
Sunflower — 7-10 days
Sweetpea — 4 days
Tulip — 7-10 days
Yarrow* — 5 days
Zinnia* — 7 days (wiggle wiggle to make sure the stem is sturdy before cutting)
Note: A complete list of botanical vase life can be found in my book, The Love Language of Flowers. It also includes step-by-step tutorials, a toolbox section filled with floral concepts, a complete glossary of flowers, herbs and other botanicals and their meanings, and over 30 botanical designs with meaning that honor the seasonal rhythms of nature, build confidence, and provide flexibility to let your own creative voice develop. It is truly an excellent resource for those seeking to grow their botanical creativity in a meaningful way.
*These flowers have a bad wrap for turning their vase water a dark murky color, usually in less than 24 hours. To remedy this, add a few drops of bleach to the water each time you refresh.
**Since we’ve entered the dahlia month, I wanted to add a quick tip I recently learned about extending the vase life of dahlias! First, it’s important to cut them when the blooms are 3/4 open and drop immediately into a bucket of water. If you find that the flowers are beginning to wilt, place the stem(s) in very hot water and let it cool down to room temp. This helps the petals hang on for another day or two.
Remember, cut flowers don’t like to hang out in direct sunlight and benefit from fresh water everyday. When you change out the water, add a pinch of sugar and snip the ends of each stem to clean them up. These simple steps can extend the life of your blooms by days!
Disclaimer: This article may contain Amazon affiliate links. Cedar House Living LLC receives a small commission for sales generated through these links at no additional cost to you. I use the commissions to further expand my garden, floral, and herbal knowledge so I can continue to share what I learn with you.
