How to Keep Sunflowers Alive?

Author Image

By Ashley Hanson

Updated: Feb 03, 2024

8 min read

How to Keep Sunflowers Alive

Table of Content

    Displaying sunflowers at your home with lovely vases gives a great sense of attractive decor to your living style. Picking and cutting the sunflowers at the right time helps them stay for a longer duration and creates a vibrant and beautiful atmosphere to your house. Sunflowers can survive in your interiors for around seven to fourteen days easily provided that they are fresh and carefully cut down. Brighten your home with an arrangement of sunflowers that are fresh and alive.

    The struggle is to keep your sunflowers from sagging after they have been picked by you.

    You can increase the life of your sunflower arrangement for longer periods. The bright colours of sunflowers bring cheer to any home.

    Ensuring that cut sunflowers stay as bright and vibrant by proper care and attention, keeping cut sunflowers fresh is easier than ever. There are many steps we take to ensure our sunflowers stay healthy and happy, from picking the best flowers to providing  a nurturing environment. Let us discover the tips to enjoy a long-lasting arrangement of beautiful cut sunflowers.

    Picking Fresh Sunflowers

    Follow the below steps to keep your sunflowers alive:

    1. Strength- Sunflowers strength system is their stems and while picking the right sunflowers for your home, choose high quality stems that will keep them fresh.
    2. Colours- Consider vibrant colors that show no signs of drying or fading. Avoid picking up sunflowers that have brown spots or are starting to fall off.
    3. Balancing- Put together the sunflowers that have lots of buds,haven't opened yet and that the leaves are green and not bruised or damaged. Pick Sunflowers in the morning. As the sun continues to shine, they can dry quickly throughout the day. For best freshness, try to pick them in the early hours of the morning. Picking sunflowers before dawn allows cooler night-time temperatures to seep into groundwater, which helps prevent them from sagging.
    4. Removal- Remove the extra leaves by cutting off the leaves  below the flower heads, as they suck moisture away from the flowers and cause them to sag quickly. Docut other leaves that may prevent water absorption.This keeps sunflowers looking their best for longer.
    5. Placement- Place the cut flowers in a clean vase filled with  room temperature water mixed with a packet of flower protectant.
    6. Daily Routine- Make sure to change the water daily and cut 1/4 inch off the stem each time you change the water. This will help ensure your sunflowers stay fresh for days to come.

    With proper care, freshly cut sunflowers should last up to two weeks. It starts with taking care of the flowers before they are cut. Sunflowers can grow very tall from six to ten feet tall that will require a daily cutting and caring.

    Get rid of Extra Leaves from Sunflowers.

    Now that you have picked the best sunflowers for your home it is time to remove the excess baggage that is leaves to keep your sunflowers alive.

    Step 1- Very softly remove all the leaves from the  head and stem of the flower which ensures that your flowers look their best and are able to absorb as many nutrients as possible from the water.

    Step 2- Remove any leaves below the waterline as this cuts off oxygen from any bacteria that may form and causes them to rot.

    Step 3- Remove sagged, rotted or yellowed leaves as they contain bacteria that spreads to other parts of the sunflower. This helps promote healthy growth and keep them alive.

    Pruning Sunflowers to Make Them Last

    There are some simple tips mentioned for cutting sunflowers and what to do with them right after so they last a little longer in your decor. Cut  sunflowers in the morning after the dew has dried but before the temperature warms and the flowers wilt, now cut the flowers with scissors or garden shears at a 45 degree angle.

    Pruning Sunflowers to Make Them Last

    After this immediately place the cut sunflowers in a bucket of room temperature water. This will prevent sunflowers from wilting in the future. Leave the flowers in the bucket for at least a few hours. This will make sure that all the small insects can get out and the stems can absorb as much water as possible before cutting and at the end use cool water on your vases. Doing this is sometimes just as effective as using flower protectants, bleach or lemon-lime soda.

    Use what works for you. Before moving to the vase, cut off the bottom inch of each sunflower stem from the corner while it is still submerged in the bucket. To extend the life of sunflowers, change the water in the vase every few days.

    Important Things to Follow While Cutting and Watering

    • Use diluted bleached scissors that are neat and clean for cutting.
    • Cut an inch of stem from the base before placing it into a vase.
    • Change the water at regular time intervals.
    • There are no leaves or any debris into the water, only the stem is submerged in the water.
    • Daily cutting and replacing of water is must

    Choose a Vase That Matches the Sunflowers Bouquet

    • Vase with a large mouth can make a small bouquet lose its shape.
    • A vase with a neck that is too small for you will crush the stems and make everything look crowded.
    • Before cutting the flower stems, keep the vase full of water and ready for use.
    • Cut the stem by an inch before placing them.
    • Keep vases out of direct sunlight and in the coolest places.
    • Changing the water of the vase daily or twice a day can significantly extend the life of your sunflowers.
    • A good preservative can be added to vase.

    Arranging Your Sunflowers

    Give your home a decor with an arrangement of sunflowers that are fresh and alive.

    • Make a Colourful Bouquet with Sunflowers.
    • Fill a Vase with Sunflowers for a Simple Centrepiece.
    • Line Your Window platform with Sunflowers in glass Jars.
    • Create a Sunflower based dining setting.
    • Arrange sunflowers in small vases at every corner of the seating area.

    Conclusion

    Adding beauty to your home then there is no better way than fresh sunflowers that bring a feel of being alive. Sunflowers are not only eye-catching, but also symbols of good luck, longevity and strength.

    Whether placed alone in a vase or used as part of a larger arrangement, these vibrant flowers are capable of brightening up any room. If you want bright, bold and majestic sunflowers to bring instant joy to your home this summer, you need to arrange them now to give a full of life atmosphere.

    FAQs

    How Long Do Sunflowers Last?

    If you clean, cut and change the water on a daily basis, rest assured your sunflower will last for ten to twelve days.

    Should Sunflowers Be Put in Water?

    Yes, sunflowers thrive on freshwater, submerging only the stems of sunflowers into the water to make them last longer.

    Can a Sunflower Last in a Vase?

    A vase arrangement of sunflowers can last two weeks with proper care and attention.

    How Do You Revive Sunflowers in a Vase?

    To prevent sunflowers from sagging, cut about an inch off of each stem at a 45 degree angle and place the flowers back in cold, fresh water. It will revive back up within 24 hours.

    Table of Content

      Get daily updates to your inbox!

      Subscribe to our mailing list to receives daily updates!

      Related Stories