What should you add to vase water to make flowers last: sugar, aspirin, Sprite or a coin? Most old tips either don't work or do harm. Here is what commercial flower food contains, how to make your own from three ingredients, and which popular tricks are just myths.
More on this topic: how to make a bouquet last longer, how to revive roses, how to dry flowers.
A cut flower has lost its root but is still alive: it needs energy, water and clean stem vessels. So commercial flower food has three parts: sugar (energy), acid (lowers pH so the stem drinks better) and a biocide (keeps bacteria from blocking the vessels).
Bacteria are the bouquet's main enemy: they cloud the water and slime the stems, so the flower wilts from thirst while standing in water.
Every UFL bouquet comes with a sachet of flower food; dissolve it as the packet says. The rest of the care rules are in how to make a bouquet last longer.
If the sachet has run out, mix 1 tsp sugar, 1 tsp lemon juice (or a pinch of citric acid) and 2–3 drops of household bleach into 1 litre of water.
Use only a few drops of bleach; more burns the cut ends. A water-purification tablet at a similarly tiny dose also works.
Change the solution every 2 days and recut the stems by 1–2 cm at an angle.
Sugar alone: myth. It feeds bacteria faster than the flower and the water spoils within a day.
Aspirin: mostly myth. It slightly acidifies the water, but there's no convincing evidence it extends vase life.
Sprite or another clear lemonade: partly works, as it contains sugar and citric acid. Dilute 1 part to 3 parts water and add a drop of bleach. Cola and dark drinks don't work.
A copper coin: myth. Modern coins contain little copper and hardly any dissolves.
Activated charcoal: weak effect. It slightly slows decay but doesn't replace changing the water.
Salt, lots of vinegar and potassium permanganate: harmful; they burn cut ends and dehydrate stems.
Tulips like cool water and a shallow vase: 5–7 cm of water is enough.
Daffodils release sap that harms other flowers; keep them alone for 6–12 hours before mixing.
Roses and hydrangeas respond best to a fresh cut and clean water; if heads have drooped, see how to revive roses. If the bouquet has already drooped, see how to revive a wilted bouquet.
A vase of flowers often sits within reach of a child or cat, so be careful with additives:
The safest option is the sachet of flower food florists provide, plus fresh water every day.
Every UFL bouquet arrives with a sachet of flower food to keep it fresh longer.
See roses and roses in a box.
A flower-food sachet or a homemade mix: sugar, lemon juice and 2–3 drops of bleach per litre.
There's no convincing evidence; the effect is minimal.
Only with an acid and an antiseptic; otherwise sugar feeds bacteria.
Every 1–2 days, recutting the stems each time.
Author: Maria Svitlovir
Graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Institute of Biology and Medicine (2001). BSc in Biology, MSc in Horticulture. Writes about plants, works at a garden centre selecting and repotting plants, and contributes to plant reference guides.
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