I was cutting my tulip stems wrong for eight years straight

I always snipped them straight across like any other flower. Then I saw a video from a grower in Holland who said you have to cut them at a sharp angle, almost like a point. He said it lets them drink way more water and stops them from flopping over so fast. I tried it on a batch of 50 tulips for a wedding last month, and they stood up tall for the whole weekend. Why don't they teach this basic stuff in floral design classes? What other simple tricks have you all picked up from growers that changed your work?

4 comments

4 Comments

allen.kai27d ago

Right? It's wild how the simplest things get missed. Another one that blew my mind was learning to strip all the leaves off tulip stems before putting them in water. Like, every single leaf below the water line. It stops the water from getting gross so fast and they actually last. I got that tip from a grower at a market and felt so dumb for not knowing sooner.

ruby_henderson3627d ago

Oh man, that hits home... I was doing the exact same thing for ages. It feels like such a tiny detail, but it makes a huge difference. I had a whole batch of tulips for a dinner party just completely give up on me, stems all soft and heads on the table. Finding out that little trick was a total game changer, like a secret you wish someone had told you years ago.

elliot_gibson2727d ago

Wait, you guys use cold water too, right? Honestly, after @allen.kai mentioned the leaves thing, I tried that plus keeping them in a cool spot and they stood up straight for over a week.

avery_jackson20d ago

Oh wow, that reminds me of the whole penny in the water thing for daffodils. I used to mix them with other flowers and everything would wilt super fast. My grandma told me to just drop a dull copper penny in the vase water first. Something about the metal stops the slimy stuff they put out. It sounds like total nonsense but it actually works, I can put them in a mixed bouquet now without killing everything else.