Shopping for Flowers

Online

Many online retailers offer a variety of flower bouquets with generally good quality. If you order from a major online flower retailer, consider having them delivered to yourself so you can personalize the presentation. Usually these flowers come in a big box with lots of packaging to clean up. Remove the flowers, toss the excess packaging, and save your sweetie the clean up. Search the Internet for coupon codes for discounts or shipping deals.

Local Florist

You will have much more control over the quality of blooms if you select each flower yourself. Stems should be strong and green, without dark or soft spots. The leaves should be intact, although remember that you can peel off individual leaves if a few have been damaged. Ask for help if you’re not sure what to look for. Most florist staff are extraordinarily knowledgeable and happy to help. If you don’t see exactly what you’re after in the main coolers, ask. Often there are buckets more flowers in the back to choose from. If you’re assembling your own bouquet, go multi-colored for a wildflower feel, or monochromatic for a more elegant bouquet.

Wholesale

Interested in a grander gesture, like rose petals covering the bedspread, or filling the house with blooms of every color? Consider a floral wholesaler. Some local shops offer wholesale pricing. The tradeoff is usually that they will not do any arranging, wrapping, cleaning of petals and leaves, etc. Online wholesalers also offer bulk pricing, and sometimes you can find more rare flowers not available in local shops.

Keeping Flowers Fresh

No matter where you buy your flowers, take a minute to perform some maintenance that will keep blooms fresher longer:

• Cut the stems about an inch on a diagonal, preferably under a water bath or running water.
• Trim any leaves that would be submerged in water in a vase.
• The water in a vase should be lukewarm, not cold. Fill the vase about two-thirds full.
• Use flower food — that little packet that comes with most fresh flowers. It feeds flowers and helps prevent bacteria from growing in water.
• Remove pollen in flowers like lilies. If allowed to fall on their own, they can stain surfaces and clothing.
• Change the water in the vase regularly. Trim the stems with each water change.
• To keep flowers in top shape, store them in the refrigerator overnight.

Finally, take the time to write a nice card. Don’t stress about coming up with the perfect sonnet: a simple message can be the most powerful.