The Simple Hack That Stops Lilacs From Dying In The Vase

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Lilac shrubs have lots of benefits for a garden. They're a stunning flowering bush that will turn your garden into a bird paradise, their is a delight to the nostrils, and, of course, their blooms make for a fairy-tale centerpiece on your Mother's Day celebration table. Fresh-cut lilac flowers typically only last in a vase, maybe a little longer if you take very good care of them. Extending that vase life, conversely, involves getting a little destructive with these beautiful blooms. Generally, you get five from lilacs; to reach that six-day mark or even push a little past it, you need to smash the woody stems with a hammer to before arranging them in a water-filled vase.

Lilac are cold-climate plants prized for their fabulously fluffy yet fleeting blooms. They only appear for a short time in each year, and don't last long in a vase. Why? The brown-copper stems are notoriously tough — or woody in horticultural speak. Cutting a stem of inflorescence from its parent shrub the transport routes water once took to reach the blooms. The stem to hydrate the flowers, no matter how much you fill the vase or how often you change the water, and the entire display quickly wilts. (Note that this isn't limited to just lilacs; it happens with other woody stemmed cut flowers, too — , and more.)

Before you can start planning all the gorgeous ways to incorporate lilac into your home decor, you need to make sure the vibrant blooms will last days, not hours, after picking. It's time to start crushing! Toolwise, you'll need a , a or mallet, or the . You'll also need a sturdy surface to bang on, like a large rock or disused paver. Wear gardening gloves for safety. Have a bucket filled with fresh, cool water nearby. from your stem and lay the cut end of the stem on your hard surface. Pick up your smashing implement of choice and gently the until it just starts to break apart. You want to split the stem, not smoosh it into a sticky mess.

Once you've gently cracked the stems apart, of the strands of bark and stem and pull them , away from the cut end. This opens up the cracks and splits the stem more. place the crushed stem into your to all that life-giving hydration. A shows off the blooms best. A 3.15-inch-wide Eggone Large Brass Floral Frog Flower with Rubber Base costs about $22. If the blooms are particularly droopy, fill a heat-proof jar with and before arranging them.

that crushing lilac stems is the best way to keep your cut flowers fresh longer. Smashing, some experts note, damages the plant tissues, creating wounds that allow plant health-harming to , making them more  and once placed in a vase full of water. to the aims of the hammering technique, this available to suck up water and keep blooms erect. If you're unsure whether pounding the stems is a good idea, there's another method you can try: You can split the stems.

Grab a or , first making sure they're sharp and clean. Starting at the cut end of the stem, run an open blade upward a single time, creating a somewhere between to 2 long. Then, pull one side of the slit  and onto the stem. You can also off the stem before slicing it vertically or cut the stem lengthwise at . An alternative to a slit is to cross-hatch the stem about from the bottom. If you're having a hard time slicing through the stem, soak your lilac branches in fresh water for or so to soften them and make them easier to cut cleanly. You can even do all the cutting when the stems are , preventing the air from filling and blocking the water-drinking vessels.