Fresh flowers are one of the most thoughtful things you can send, and one of the first questions we get asked is simple: how long do flowers last? The honest answer is that it depends on the variety and on what happens in the first hour after they arrive. Most hand tied arrangements will give you somewhere between five and fourteen days, and a few will go well past that.

This is what we tell our own customers at Bloom Blessings, written out properly. It covers how long each type of flower realistically lasts, how to keep flowers fresh from the moment they land on the bench, and the handful of mistakes that quietly cut a week off a bouquet.

How Long Do Flowers Last? A Guide by Variety

Vase life varies more than most people expect. These are realistic ranges for flowers kept in clean water, out of direct sun, in a normal Melbourne home.

  • Tulips: 3 to 7 days. They also keep growing in the vase and will lean towards the light.
  • Ranunculus: 5 to 7 days, and they open dramatically as they go.
  • Roses: 5 to 8 days with fresh water and a re-trim every couple of days.
  • Gerberas: 5 to 8 days. Their stems are thirsty and soften first, so change the water often.
  • Hydrangeas: 5 to 10 days. They drink through their petals as well as their stems, so a light mist helps.
  • Sunflowers: 6 to 12 days, depending on how open they were when they arrived.
  • Lilies: 10 to 14 days, because the buds keep opening in sequence.
  • Alstroemeria: around 2 weeks, and one of the best value stems in a mixed bunch.
  • Carnations: 2 to 3 weeks. Underrated, and among the longest lasting cut flowers there is.
  • Chrysanthemums: up to 2 to 3 weeks with basic care.
  • Australian natives: proteas, banksias, waratah and eucalyptus regularly go beyond 2 weeks, and the foliage often outlives the blooms.

In a mixed arrangement the softest flower sets the pace. A bunch with tulips and carnations in it will start looking tired around the tulips first, which is normal and not a fault. Pull the spent stems and the rest will carry on.

How to Keep Flowers Fresh in the First Hour

Most of the damage that shortens a bouquet happens before anyone thinks to look after it. If you do nothing else, do this when the flowers arrive.

  1. Get them into water quickly. Cut stems seal over once they are out of water for a while, and a sealed stem cannot drink.
  2. Use a clean vase. A vase that looks fine can still carry bacteria from the last bunch. Wash it properly with hot soapy water.
  3. Trim two to three centimetres off each stem at an angle. The angle stops the stem sitting flat on the bottom of the vase and gives it more surface to drink through.
  4. Strip any leaves that would sit below the water. Submerged foliage rots and turns the water cloudy within a day, and cloudy water is what kills flowers early.
  5. Pick the spot before you fill the vase. Away from the window, away from the heater, away from the fruit bowl.

How to Keep Flowers Lasting Longer, Day by Day

Once they are settled, keeping flowers fresh is mostly about water and a little maintenance. None of this takes more than two minutes.

Change the water every two days

This is the single highest impact thing you can do. Fresh water every second day, and a full vase rinse while you are there. If the water has gone cloudy, it is already past due.

Re-trim the stems when you change the water

A centimetre is enough. Stems seal and clog over time, and a fresh cut reopens them.

Use the flower food, properly

The sachet is not decoration. It feeds the blooms and slows bacteria in the water. Use the whole sachet in the volume of water it is meant for, not a pinch in a large vase.

Keep them cool

Flowers last dramatically longer in a cool room. Direct sunlight, a heater vent or the top of the fridge will all take days off. If you want to be thorough, move the vase somewhere cooler overnight.

Remove spent blooms as they go

A dying flower releases ethylene, which speeds up everything around it. Pulling one tired stem protects the rest of the bunch.

How to Maintain Fresh Flowers Through a Melbourne Summer

Melbourne makes this harder than it needs to be. A hot northerly can put a room over thirty degrees by mid afternoon, and air conditioning dries the air out at the same time. Both shorten vase life.

On a hot day, move the vase off the windowsill and away from any west facing glass, top the water up in the afternoon as well as the morning, and keep the arrangement out of the direct path of the air conditioner. If flowers are being delivered to an office or a business that closes over a weekend, it is worth telling us, so we can suggest something hardier.

Five Things That Quietly Kill a Bouquet

  • The fruit bowl. Ripening fruit gives off ethylene gas, which ages flowers fast. Keep them on separate benches.
  • Cloudy water. Bacteria block the stems from drinking. This is the most common cause of a bouquet dying early.
  • Direct sun. A sunny windowsill feels like the right spot and is one of the worst.
  • Heating and cooling vents. Constant moving air dries petals out from the outside in.
  • Leaves under the water. They rot within a day or two and contaminate the whole vase.

Which Flowers to Choose if You Want Them to Last

If longevity matters more than anything else, ask for carnations, chrysanthemums, alstroemeria or Australian natives. A native arrangement with banksia, gum and protea will often still look good after two weeks, and it dries beautifully rather than collapsing.

If the flowers are going somewhere they will not be tended closely, an aged care residence, a hospital or a workplace reception, hardier varieties are simply the kinder choice. Tell us where the arrangement is going and we will build for it. You can browse the range here, or look at sympathy flowers and birthday flowers if you have an occasion in mind.

Our Seven Day Freshness Guarantee

Every arrangement we send is built by hand on the day it goes out, from flowers bought fresh at the Melbourne market several times a week. We back that with a seven day freshness guarantee. If your flowers wilt or deteriorate prematurely within seven days, we will replace them or provide a store credit. The full conditions, including what is covered and what is not, are published on our delivery information page.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do flowers last in a vase?

Most hand tied arrangements last between five and fourteen days. Roses and tulips sit at the shorter end, while carnations, chrysanthemums and Australian natives regularly last two weeks or more. Clean water and a cool spot make more difference than anything else.

How do you keep flowers fresh for longer?

Change the water every two days, re-trim the stems by a centimetre each time, strip any leaves sitting below the waterline, use the whole flower food sachet, and keep the vase out of direct sun and away from heating or cooling vents.

Should I use cold or warm water for cut flowers?

Room temperature water suits most flowers. Bulb flowers such as tulips and daffodils prefer it on the cooler side. What matters far more than temperature is that the water is clean and changed regularly.

Is the flower food sachet actually worth using?

Yes. It feeds the blooms and slows the bacteria that block stems from drinking. Use the full sachet in the amount of water it is intended for rather than a pinch in a large vase.

Why did my flowers wilt after only two days?

Usually one of three things: the stems sealed over before they reached water, the water went cloudy with bacteria, or the vase was sitting in sun, near a heater or beside ripening fruit. A fresh cut and clean water will often revive them.

What if my flowers do not last?

We back every order with a seven day freshness guarantee. Contact us within seven days with a photo and your order number and we will replace the arrangement or issue a store credit. The full terms are on our delivery information page.

Fresh Flower Delivery Across Melbourne

We deliver hand tied, market fresh flowers across Melbourne Monday to Friday, same day when you order before 12pm. That includes Eltham, Greensborough, Diamond Creek, Templestowe and Doncaster, along with the rest of our delivery areas. Shop flowers and we will take care of the rest.