The name hydrangea comes from the Greek “hydor,” meaning water, and “angos,” meaning jar or vessel. Translation: water barrel! These gorgeous pom-pom-like flowers need water, and when they don’t get it, they will wilt.
The good news? With a few simple tricks, you can keep your hydrangeas looking full, fresh, and beautiful for much longer at home.
From market to home
- After purchasing, take your flowers straight home.
- If you're travelling any distance, always place them in a bucket of water - hydrangeas don't like being out of water for long.
Cut the stems at an angle (and keep doing it)
- Hydrangeas have strong, long, woody stems. They look beautiful, but they do need a little extra help to drink.
- Once unwrapped, trim about 2-3cm off the stem at a 45-degree angle.
- This increases the surface area for water absorption.
- We recommend re-cutting the stems every couple of days to keep them drinking well.
Cut vertically up the stems
- You'll notice some of the stems have already been split vertically up the middle by at least 3cm. It's ideal to make two vertical cuts so it splits the stem into quarters.
- This helps water travel more freely up to the flower head.
- You may have heard that you can “bash the stems” — however, we prefer to cut them vertically instead. It’s a cleaner approach and allows the water to flow more freely up to the flower head.
We plunge the flower heads into water
Once they arrive from the farm and before we sell them, we always plunge the flower heads into buckets of water so the petals are fully hydrated.
At home, you can do the same:
- Place the flower heads into a sink or deep bucket of water
- If they start to look a little tired, submerge the entire flower head for longer - it's amazing how quickly they can bounce back
- A gentle mist of water each morning will help keep them fresh
- Hydrangeas drink through their petals as well as their stems, which is why this works so well.
The boil treatment
- If your hydrangeas are looking quite wilted, this can work wonders:
- Bring a kettle of water to the boil
- Pour approx 3cm of boiling water into a container or vase of some kind
- Re-cut stems at a 45-degree angle and split them vertically again
- Place the stems into the hot water
- Leave for a while (at least one hour)
- Some people place a loose bag over the top to create gentle humidity (with a small opening to let steam escape)
- Finally place the hydrangeas back into a vase of fresh water that is at least 1/3 full of water. Never allow the water to get too low in the vase.
Keep leaves out of the water
- As with all flowers, ensure no leaves sit below the water line.
- Leaves in water create bacteria, which can block stems and shorten vase life.
A few simple extras
- Change the water daily
- Keep them out of direct sun and heat
- A light mist over the heads can help keep them feel fresh
- Keep your ripening fruit bowl away from your flowers. It will help them last that little bit longer too.
Hydrangeas can feel a little temperamental, but once you understand how they drink, they're incredibly generous flowers. Good luck - and we always love hearing how you go.