One day last month I was walking through the grocery store and saw roses on sale for $6.99/doz. I can’t help but stop and look, but I very rarely buy flowers at the grocery store. Why? Because you never know how long they’ve been sitting there or how long it’s been since they were cut or how many people have squeezed them…and I get really annoyed if I buy roses and the heads droop the next day. However, the roses at my grocery store have a guarantee attached to each bunch…guaranteeing they will last 7 days. My typical (cynical) response…”yea, right!” So…on that particular day, I decided to grab a dozen at a bargain price and prove the guarantee wrong.

I carefully selected a bunch…no bruising, no black spots and still firm to the touch. I took the roses home, recut the stems, dipped them in Quick Dip and placed them in the floral preservative provided by the grocery store. After the roses hydrated for several hours, I arranged them and waited for them to wilt. I repeated this experiment for 3 consecutive weeks with a new pink variety each week. I didn’t change the water or recut the stems once the roses were arranged…just waited for them to wilt. Here are the roses on Day 7…

Week #1…’Esther’ roses

Week #2…’Rosita Vendela’ roses

Week #3…’Esprit’ roses

I couldn’t believe it! The roses looked great for a week and the ‘Esther’ roses actually lasted almost 2 weeks. I doubt a typical grocery store shopper would know how to choose the freshest blooms and condition the roses…and have the appropriate supplies on hand…so I probably had a slight advantage. But, all in all, I was pleasantly surprised and have to apologize for my cynicism.

Thanks for stopping by today! Hope you have a great day…