My aunt told me to use vodka in flower water, and I finally tried it

My aunt has been doing flowers for church events for like 30 years, and she kept saying a tiny bit of vodka in the vase water keeps blooms fresh longer. I always thought it sounded weird, but last month I had a big wedding order with white peonies that needed to stay perfect for three days. I was worried, so I tried her tip. I put about a capful of plain vodka in each bucket of water for the peonies. I kept another batch without it as a test. The vodka ones looked way better by the third day, they were still firm and the water was clearer. The other ones were starting to droop a bit. I guess it stops bacteria without hurting the stems? Has anyone else tried this, or do you use something different like bleach or sugar?

3 comments

3 Comments

kim81924d ago

Got any other weird booze tips?

charlie_ellis25d ago

Makes sense, old tricks often work best.

the_matthew25d ago

My grandpa's method for fixing a wobbly table was just folding up a matchbook. Still works better than anything from a hardware store. I tried explaining that to my neighbor and he looked at me like I had three heads. Guess some wisdom just looks like being cheap from the outside.