Instructions on how to choose lilies to play Tet with lots of leaves at the beginning of the year

Lilies are beautiful and last longer than other flowers, so they are very popular during the holidays. If you know how to take care of them and especially how to choose fresh lily branches, your vase can last from 7-10 days.

How to choose beautiful and long lasting lilies for Tet

1. Don't buy flowers too early

Many people are afraid that the closer to Tet, the more expensive the flowers will be, or that people will buy all the beautiful flowers and only have bad ones left, so they tend to buy flowers early. However, you should know that lilies are only at their best for about a week after being cut from the branch. If they are well preserved, they can last for another 2 or 3 days. Therefore, the best time to buy lilies is from the 27th (if December has 29 days) or 28 or 29 (if December has 30 days).

Lilies are at their best about a week after being cut from the stem.

2. Branches with both flowers and buds

You should choose lily branches with both flowers and buds so that they bloom throughout the Tet holiday.

1. You should choose straight, healthy lily branches with 3-5 buds or flowers.
2. The most beautiful lily branch is usually the one with about 5 buds and 1 lily flower.
3. The flowers have not bloomed much and the leaves on the branches are sturdy, dark green and not drooping.
4. There are still thin threads on the leaves. These are fresh lily branches that have just been harvested.

3. Be careful when choosing flowers in plastic bags

When flowers are still in plastic bags, you should observe carefully because there may be crushed flowers or glued flowers, broken flowers that have been cut and grafted without your knowledge, so be careful and look carefully. If you are not too busy, you should not buy flowers at night because at that time the light is not enough, you cannot see the flowers clearly, crushed branches, and petals with powder stains will be harder to detect.

4. Identifying beautiful and durable lilies

1. The lily plant/branch has a swollen bottom bud that is starting to show color.
2. The leaves are fresh, not damaged by pests or diseases, not crushed, and show no signs of being stored for a long time in cold storage.
3. Potted lilies should be chosen from fresh plants, long-lasting flowers, beautiful colors, and green leaves.
4. You should not choose lily plants/branches that are broken, have wilted leaves, or flowers that often lose buds.
5. If you choose lily branches, you should choose branches with fresh leaves, green leaves, and bright flowers.
6. Do not choose branches with many flowers or pollen. Because pollen will cause the petals to quickly turn black, so they cannot be displayed for long.

In particular, you should choose lilies originating from Da Lat. Because lilies grown in Da Lat often bloom larger and have a more pleasant fragrance than other types of lilies.

How to distinguish fresh lilies and frozen lilies

Frozen lilies are often not fresh, when taken out the leaves will shrink and wilt slightly.

1. Flowers are not fragrant, slightly wilted, discolored, and have lost all the fine hairs on the leaves and flowers.
2. When you buy it and put it in a vase, the flower will not bloom.
3. After 1-2 days, the flower starts to rot, the petals fall off, leaving only the stem.

Fresh lilies have brighter, fresher colors, hard stems, flowers and leaves with thin fibers. In addition, the leaves are not bruised, the flowers are full. The newly cut branches will have sap flowing.

When buying, people only need to look at the roots, stems and leaves. If the flowers do not look as fresh as freshly cut flowers and are not fragrant, they are frozen flowers. In particular, frozen flowers are cheaper.

How to keep lilies fresh for a long time

With cut lilies, when you buy them, you should use a sharp knife to cut the stem of the flower diagonally and then put it in water immediately so the flower does not wilt.

Washing the vase before arranging the flowers helps prevent the flowers from rotting.

Instead of just using regular cold water, you should add a little dishwashing liquid or dissolve a B1 tablet into the flower water to disinfect, prevent the growth of bacteria and fungi that cause flowers to rot and increase nutrients to keep flowers fresh longer.

Mixing 1 liter of water with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice will also help flowers stay fresh longer. Alternatively, you can crush an aspirin and mix it with the water to have the same effect.

Remove pollen: Pollen will quickly turn lilies black after cutting, which means reducing the life of the flower. Therefore, you need to remove pollen before arranging to be able to display fresh flowers for up to 2 weeks. In addition, pollen can also cause allergies for some people who are sensitive to scents.

Change the water for the flowers every two days. Each time you change the water, you must wash the vase thoroughly, wash the submerged flower stems, and use a knife to cut a small section at the base to prevent the roots from rotting and help the flowers absorb water better and stay fresh longer.