My Favorite Fresh Cut Flower Hack

Learn how to keep flowers fresh with this flower hack I use for freshly cut flowers or to preserve flowers purchased from the florist or road side market.

Just one piece of paper towel will keep your freshly cut flowers amazingly fresh!

How To Keep Flowers Fresh

Materials

Quart or gallon size plastic bag (preferably with zipper top)

Fresh flowers

Paper towel(s)

Water

Rubber band optional

Directions

Unwrap fresh flowers from wrapping if using store bought flowers. 

Cut the ends of the flowers off at an angle at the desired measurement.

Moisten one paper towel with water.

A good rule of how much water is easy! Run the paper towel under cold water and then gently wring out the water.

The paper towel should be very moist, but not dripping with water.

The paper towel is now folded in half, napkin style to form a wide triangle.

The top of the triangle should be pointed up.

Gently flip the side of the paper towel facing you, towards you.

Insert the flowers, stems towards the bottom of the paper towel inside of the paper towel. You have now formed a paper towel flower sandwich.

Align the bottom of the flower stems with the top point of the paper towel.

Flip back the top layer of the paper towel to the flowers as if making a flower sandwich.

Lift the right arm of the triangle and fold to the center.

Lift the left arm of the triangle and fold to center.

The paper towel triangle filled with flowers will now be secured with a rubber band or piece of string if a rubber band is not available.

With one hand, keeping the flowers laying flat, reach behind the flowers and paper towel and gather the paper towel around the stems. 

Using a rubber band or a piece of string (this is optional), place the rubber band around the paper towels and secure. The rubber band should be double or triple wrapped around the paper towels.

Insert the flowers into a quart size baggie with a zip lock. 

Gently close the zipper as far as possible to the stems of the fresh flowers. Do not crush the stems, stop zipping at the point where the flowers will be sticking out the baggie.

Refrigerate.

Method 2 To Preserve Fresh Flowers

The circumference of the paper towel and flower stems will determine if a quart or gallon sized ziploc bag is used. 

Fold the  paper towel in half to make a triangle.

The point of the triangle should be facing down towards you.

Lay bottom of the flowers on the paper towel at an angle.

The bottom of the flowers stems should be approximately three inches up from the point of the paper towel. (There will be three inches between the bottom of the stems and the point of the paper towel.)

Bring up the bottom of the paper towel and fold over the top of the stems.

Bring each side of the paper towel toward the flower stems.

Using one hand gently gather the paper towel and press together. 

Secure the paper towel bundle with a rubber band.

Insert the flowers with the paper towel in the plastic bag.

If using a zipper lock plastic bag then the bottom of the flowers can be secured in the bag by zipping closed the plastic bag up to the beginning oi the bunch of flowers.

Refrigerate the flowers until needed.

How To Keep Fresh Flowers From Dying

Water and refrigeration will keep the flowers fresh for over a day! The paper towel “vase” is very effective with refrigeration to keep the fresh cut flowers alive. I have left the paper towel wrapped flowers in the refrigerator for over two days and the flowers were fresh as ever!

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