Youch! on reading further I discovered this gem
“Trials we have done ourselves at the shop and while I was in college suggest that floral food packets are not the best option, but rather it would be best if consumers simply trim stems and use fresh tap (Yes, TAP) water every other day. The chemicals added to tap water prevent unwanted bacterial growth for the most part, and fresh water does the rest.
“What we have found with most floral foods is that the average consumer doesn't dissolve them fully, nor is the carbohydrate provided in the flower food QUITE the right form of sugar, so it tends to clog the ends of the floral stems more than it helps them.
“Consequently, we have spent 7+ years educating our customers to throw their floral food packets away, trim stems every other day and fill up with tap water. Our customers report longer vase life than they have ever experienced from any other florist, and we save on the added expense of purchasing floral preservatives.”
Now we have florists that have made the leap to researchers and are publishing their findings as fact.
Here's a fact , the "chemical" added to tap tap water to inhibit bacteria growth is Chlorine, one of the concerns with chlorine as a water treatment agent is its volatile nature which causes it to disappear too quickly from the water system. For those of you who own swimming pools or hot tubs you know how fast chlorine dissipates. The bacteria agents in flower food are designed to hang around for the longer term, but even so need to be replaced with the addition of more flower food. Suggesting that the chlorine in tap water is adequate to deter bacteria growth in a vase of flowers is akin to suggesting that simply rinsing your flower shop buckets with tap water is adequate. Based on this train of thought maybe we can all join the family dog and start taking our drinking water straight from the toilet bowl, after all, the "
chemicals added to tap water prevent unwanted bacterial growth for the most part".
Secondly, on the issue of flower food. The above comment suggests that there is no need to provide flowers with any form of nourishment after they are cut. Again this statement goes against every bit of scientific research ever performed on the subject. Proper post harvest care starts at the farm level and follows through right to the consumer. Anytime a step is missed throughout the process it results in shorter flower longevity.
Last but not least, the statement that the "
carbohydrate provided in the flower food QUITE the right form of sugar, so it tends to clog the ends of the floral stems more than it helps them", shows a clear lack of understanding on the part of the writer as to the workings of a commercial flower food.Typically, the sediment that one sees at the bottom of a vase are flower food agents specifically designed to draw out certain salts, dirt, and debris which then settle rather than being drawn up the flower stem. This is a good thing, not a bad thing and something that should be explained to the consumer as part of the process of educating them regarding proper post harvest care and handling. Product care and handling knowledge is one of the services that a local "mom and pop" flower shop can provide that gives them a leg up over the supermarkets and in the long term will build a level of confidence amongst their customer base that paying the lowest price is not always the best bargain.
On a last note, it is unfortunate that in our struggling industry we have individuals that throw all solid research out the window and for the sake of pennies short changes their customers, these "flat earthers" should stick to selling flowers and leave the research and development of flower care products to those that are qualified to do so. Frankly I wouldn't be surprised if the next suggestion to avoid the cost of flower food is to use Seven -Up.
