7 Tips for Long-Lasting Sunflowers

There are few things that we enjoy more than having fresh cut flowers around and right now, we’re really loving big, beautiful Michigan sunflowers. An unwavering commitment to quality, innovative techniques and the ideal growing conditions in Southern Michigan allow our friends at Great Lakes Glads to provide our stores with the best fresh-cut Sunflowers all summer long.

When you leave our stores with a bouquet you can always expect that you’re always taking home the highest quality, freshest flowers available, but the reality is that no matter what you do, fresh-cut flowers simply don’t last forever.  Have no worries, we’ve got a few tips and tricks from our floral experts for keeping your flowers as fresh as possible for as long as possible.

Our Floral Experts are always ready and willing to lend some helpful advice for getting the most out of your favorite blooms:

1. When selecting your sunflowers, look for flowers with firm petals and healthy-looking, green leaves, no yellow or wilting leaves.
2. Keep the sunflowers nice and cool until you can get them in a flower food solution. Don’t forget how important it is to follow the mixing directions on the flower food packet.
3. Remove leaves that will be below the waterline. Leaves that end up in the water will promote bacterial microbial growth that may limit water uptake by the flower shortening vase life.
4. Be sure vase the vase you’ve selected is tall enough to provide adequate support for their height. Make sure your vase is good and clean, then mix your flower food solution in the vase.
5. Re-cut stems by removing one to two inches with a 45 degree cut with a sharp knife or clean pruning shears. Get your flowers in the vase solution you’ve prepared as quickly as possible after trimming the stems.
6. Keep sunflowers adequately hydrated to help support heavy head weight. Check throughout the day that the water levels are adequate.
7. Changing your vase solution daily will help ensure the longest possible vase life.

Follow these simple steps and you’ll be on your way to long lasting flowers. We hope you enjoy your Sunflowers!

By Heinen's Grocery Store

In 1929, Joe Heinen opened the doors of a small butcher shop on the east side of Cleveland, Ohio, aiming to establish himself as the city’s purveyor of quality meats. As customers came into Heinen’s new shop for their meat purchases, they began asking him to carry groceries as well. Joe added homemade peanut butter, pickles and donuts and by 1933, business had grown enough to include a line of produce and canned goods. Heinen’s Grocery Store was born.