We’ve all been there: You take the time to carefully select the freshest-looking bouquet from the grocery store, or you snip a few flowers from your garden to display in a vase – only to have them all wilting and drooping a few days later. There are ways to make cut flowers last longer – like changing out the water daily – but it’s also a sad reality that some types of flowers just won’t stay upright and bright for more than a few days. If you’re tired of being disappointed by wilting arrangements, seek out these flowers that last.
Chrysanthemums
This popular fall flower, commonly known as a mum, is a great choice for bouquets, since the blooms can last up to two weeks. In fact, if you have a few flowers outlasting the rest of your arrangement, there’s a good chance they’re mums. Chrysanthemums come in a variety of colors and petal shapes, including button mums (which are popular in fall gardens), anemone, quilled, spider, spoon, and pompon.
Orchids
Orchids are known to be one of the longest-lasting houseplants, with some varieties surviving for weeks or even months. While they don’t last as long as cut flowers, most orchids will stay fresh for at least two weeks. If you’re looking for an orchid with serious staying power, look for cymbidium or anthurium varieties – these two offer the most enduring flowers, sometimes surviving for four weeks or more.
Carnations
Any bouquet you’ve picked up at the grocery store probably has at least one carnation, and it’s almost always one of the last flowers standing. Carnations can last up to three weeks in a vase, as long as you keep them away from direct sunlight and heat and regularly refresh the water. They’re also one of the most versatile flowers out there, easily dyed any color of the rainbow.
Zinnias
If you want to grow lovely flowers in your garden that you can cut and bring inside your home, zinnias should be at the top of your list. These beautiful flowers come in a variety of colors, including purple, red, orange, white, pink, and yellow. They’re also very popular with pollinators like butterflies. And when you’re ready to cut a few stems to bring inside, they’ll last up to 12 days in a vase.
Alstroemerias
Also known as Peruvian lily, alstroemeria is another popular pick for bouquets. This lily look-alike grows several flowers per stem, helping create a full flower arrangement. Each individual flower usually lasts about a week, but since every stem has multiple blossoms, a cluster of alstroemerias can last for up to two weeks in a vase as all of the buds open up.
Lilies
If you’re looking for an arrangement with lilies that will last for up to two weeks, look for flowers that haven’t quite opened yet. Once you arrange them in a vase, they’ll slowly open up within a few days.
Alliums
Alliums make great cut flowers because they have long, stiff stems that won’t flop over in a vase. They’re also easy to cut to any height you want, and most varieties will last up to two weeks in a vase as long as you regularly change the water.
Also known as ornamental onions, alliums can have a strong scent, so if you leave them in the same water for too long, you might start to notice the odor. To avoid this, just change the water every few days.
