Floppy tulips?
Recently a customer came up to me and asked why their tulips were flopping all over the vase a week after they bought them. I realized even though tulips are not an exotic and unusual flower, their growth habit and and vaselife may not be known to everyone.
Did you know tulips continue growing in height even after they are cut and put into a vase? Isn’t that wild? Tulips can grow an additional 1-2 inches while in a vase and this can contribute to them “nodding” or “flopping”, especially if your vase is not tall enough or if your vase has a wide opening. Also if your tulip is a double tulip, the head can get heavy because there are twice as many petals. The heavy head, combined with the longer stem can cause the flower to droop. Many florists love this flopping habit of tulips because it adds movement to their creations but if you want your bouquet to stand up tall, I have 3 tips for you!
1) Choose a vase that is at least 2/3 the height of your tulip stems and has a narrow mouth. This will provide support for your stems as the tulips grow taller.
2) Every 3 or so days, cut about half an inch to an inch off the bottom of your tulip stems. I usually recommend this with all flowers, but especially with tulips. All flowers benefit from a fresh cut every few days because this will allow the flowers to have better uptake of the water in the vase and lead to longer lasting blooms. With tulips, this tip has an added bonus of controlling the height of the tulip stems so it doesn’t topple over your vase.
3) Change the water in your vase every 2-3 days so the water remains nice and clean. Make sure the vase holding your flowers is clean as well. A good rule of thumb florists use is the vase holding your flowers ought to be clean enough to drink from. When too much bacteria accumulates in the water, the flowers don’t last as long in a vase.
I hope these tips help you enjoy your tulip bouquets longer. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out! I love to talk about flowers.
Warmly,
Fiona