How to Preserve Flowers With Clorox

Preserve a floral arrangement with Clorox bleach.

Fresh flowers, whether from the garden or the store, add beauty to a room by bringing nature, color and fragrance indoors. Dependent upon the type of flowers, fresh cut flowers stay fresh-looking in the vase for a few days. Though flower preservatives are available at nurseries and craft stores, Clorox bleach works effectively to prolong the freshness of cut flowers, giving you more time to enjoy their beauty and fragrance.

Things You'll Need

• Garden scissors
• Vase
• Eye dropper
• 1/4 tsp. Clorox bleach

Instructions

1. 

   Freshly cut flowers drink the water more readily.

   Hold each stem under running water and trim 1 inch off of the stem, cutting the stem at an angle. This allows the flower to drink up the water and Clorox solution.

2. Fill a vase with 1 quart warm water. Use an eye dropper to measure out 1/4 tsp. Clorox bleach. Drop the Clorox bleach into the water and stir to mix.

3. Arrange the flowers in the vase, ensuring each stem is under water.

4. Remove dead flowers and leaves after a day or two. Take stems out of the water and trim another inch off. Refill the vase with fresh water and Clorox bleach to prolong freshness for a couple more days.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep fresh floral arrangements away from extreme temperatures.

• Bacteria grows in water that sits for more than a couple days, causing the flowers to wilt.

References

• Clorox: Surprising & Simple: No Green Thumb Necessary: Fantastic Floral Arrangements
• Reader's Digest: 8 Ways to Make Flowers Last Longer: Bleach