How to Make Cut Flowers Last?

Do you buy flowers from the store for your home?  Here are five great ways to make cut flowers last longer in your home display.  You can learn more great home tips from apartment therapy.

1. Put freshly picked flowers in water immediately and leave them for at least 5 hours before arranging them, a process calling conditioning. 
2. If your flowers come from your garden and not from the florist, make your own preservative, like this one from One Good thing by Jillee.  
3. Alternatively, add 2 tablespoons of white vinegar to the water and stir. The vinegar will help prevent the growth of bacteria.
4. If you have a favorite flower you use often, look online for a flower-specific tips. For example, hydrangeas last longer if you gently smash the end of each stem and immerse them in ice water before arranging. Hollow-stemmed flowers like delphiniums do well if you turn the flowers upside down, fill the stems with water, and seal them with a wet cotton ball before arranging. Poppies, and other flowers that ooze sap, last longer if you first immerse the bottom 2 inches of their stems in boiling water for 10 seconds.  
5. Have a gunky, narrow-necked vase that's hard to clean? Try this tip from Real Simple: fill it with crushed shells from hardboiled eggs, a drop of dishwashing soap, and warm water, and swirl. Rinse thoroughly with hot water, and the next arrangement you put in will last a bit longer.