There’s just a few more hours of summer left…and while I will miss those long sunny days, I have to admit I’m looking forward to fall. As much as I love the bright, clean colors of summer, I also love the rich, deep colors of autumn that can be seen both inside and out…from autumn flowers and colorful turning leaves in the neighborhood to beautiful pillows, wall-hangings, and tableware that add warmth to the home.
Bringing the rich color of the outdoors inside with fresh or dried flowers is a great way to decorate your home. Here are some flower tips I found in a magazine called Natural Home & Garden that you may find helpful.
CUT FLOWER TIPS
- When cutting stems, use a sharp knife or scissors and cut while holding under cold water.
- Splice the ends of large stems to allow greatest water absorption.
- Add a spoonful of sugar plus a few drops of lemon juice to your vase water to keep the flowers fresh longer.
- Perk up wilted flowers by placing the stems in hot water for 20 minutes; then return to vase water.
- To dry flowers, combine 30 percent borax and 70 percent white cornmeal. Cover flowers entirely and leave for several weeks.
(Source: Haley’s Hints Green Edition by Graham and Rosemary Haley.)
Enjoy your flowers and the rich autumn colors this season! 🙂
NancyC 
Some lovely fall posies! 🙂
Thank you for the tips. 🙂
~Liz
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I love fall of the year and the colors. The part I do not like is it means cold weather is on the way. I stay cold the year round and nearly freeze in the winter.
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I am so happy I read your post! I just cut roses from my rose garden for the first time and put them in a vase. A couple of roses are starting to not look so hot. I’m going to try steaming them and then put sugar and lemon juice in my next batch! I never knew this!! Thank you so much for sharing! I’m going to retweet this right now! And I love your bouquet! There is nothing like fresh flowers!
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Yes, I love fresh flowers, too! Glad you found this post helpful! 🙂
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Great tips on cut flowers! I too will miss summer but am happy to transition to fall 🙂
Blessings!
Gail
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These are lovely and those are great tips that will come in handy. Happy Rednesday!
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I think I love fall colors best of all and these are so gorgeous!
Happy Rednesday,
Sally
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Those are really great tips, because I try to have a vase of fresh flowers in my favorite vase at all times! And I agree with you. I love the rich Fall colors too!
Happy REDnesday!
Carol
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I knew the tips about the cut flowers but did not know the tips for the dried flowers. Thanks for sharing.
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I am always in the market for great tips to help me maintain my flowers! Thanks for the educational tutorial!
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Rolling in your red here! Lovely! 🙂
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