Long-Lasting Cold Storage Flowers

Flowers are the greatest treasure of this universe. Wherever they go they spread fragrance and leave a positive aura. They are a reason to smile and aid individuals to dance on the rhythm of happiness. No one can resist a twinkling smile on their face after receiving or giving flowers. If you can’t think of any gift for your dear ones and you want them to be on cloud nine then the solution to your problem is no other than flowers. You can get your dearest one the flower of their choice and get showered in the rain of love and contentment.

Flowers make a mood for every occasion as wherever they go they are welcomed wholeheartedly. Flowers are also a source of motivation amongst the masses. But how can a flower motivate as it is the softest creature of almighty? But the way a flower crosses the hurdles of the dirt, wind, insects, and excess heat and after surpassing all these they bloom exquisitely. All these surpassing the obstacles show the quality of never giving up. They represent the quality of standing strong in each moment of life no matter how hard it is. So give flowers as much as you want. They are the music of grinning at the moment of anguish. Forget all the sadness and be happy. 

But do you know the flowers that bring the rainbow to your grey skies don’t last longer? They have a short life span. And dead flowers do not bring anything good, only fresh flowers are charming and are of good use. So to keep them all fresh and blossoming they require a proper space. That space is mostly known as cold storage.

The people who work with flowers for instance the gardeners, growers, suppliers, or we can say, retailers, put their heart and soul to save them from being dried or dead. All their bread and butter are dependent on the fragrance of the beautiful blossoms. So for them, flowers need to be all smiling and charming.

What are cut flowers?

Cut flowers are those flowers that have been chopped off from the plant bearing it. They are flowers or flower buds too. It is mostly being cut from the plant for decorative purposes. They are used in vase decoration, wreaths, bridal jewelry or garlands, etc. Roses are one of the most popular cut flowers. 

How do the florists keep the flowers fresh and blossoming?

It is a sunny day, where the sun is smiling with a rising temperature, making it difficult for the florist to store and transport the blooms, as the heatwave makes them die in a jiffy. When the flowers come in contact with the direct sunrays or heatwaves they start battling for their own lives and try to stop themselves from wilting. 

How long do the flowers last?

Your doorbell rang, you ran and opened the door, and there you witness an awestruck sight, a bouquet is there for you, smiling and shining. You are grinning with the blooms you received but have you ever thought about the journey of the flowers gleaming in your ambiance reaching your room? Well, let’s assume you never really think of this thing.

Don’t you worry we are here to tell you the roadmap of a bouquet, first of all, the flowers have been bought by the florists and it takes almost a week to reach your room? As flowers are now being transported from far and far places it’s a matter of appreciation that they remain fresh and charming for such a long duration.        

 It is also a fact that the bouquets that are kept for sale in the shops may be ten days older before they have been sold to the customer, and it took much longer to visit the purposed destination.

Keeping the blooms at a cool temperature throughout the journey is an important step. As the blooms and their leaves possess 70% to 90% of water, for this it is also important to keep them hydrated and maintain their humidity. You can extend the life of a flower by extending the humidity of the room to at least 80 percent. If flowers feel hot they will start wilting in a short period, for this cold storage are there to help everyone out. To save the life of the flowers, to save the financial loss of the florists, and to save the smile of the customers.

How do maintain the temperature for cut flowers?

One can maintain the temperature by taking the help of environmental chillers or you can also use water cooling systems. These devices work for regulating the temperatures on which cut flowers are kept and later got transported by making sure of their long and fresh lives.

The best temperature for flower storage

When you are storing cut flowers you must know what ambiance they strive to survive, for storing them in the best way, you need to know the temperature at which they perform best.  Plus, it is also important that you must differentiate between the species which are intended to be kept preserved. The majority of the flowers require a temperature between 33 F- 37 F while the blooms which are a little sensitive or we can say cold sensitive or tropical flowers are advised to keep maintained at a temperature ranging above 50 F.

Atmospheric Temperature:

Generally, the normal atmospheric temperature needed for cut flowers should be closely regulated. Things that should be monitored carefully are the thermal condition of the storage facility as it should not get exceeded 40 F.

Water Temperature:

When fresh flowers got cut, they were dipped in the water and saved from dehydration. Most florists use lukewarm water. If we remove a few exceptions then hydration with warm water is best as the warm water’s molecules are easily absorbed in the stem of the flowers in comparison to the cold water. In the majority of cases, the best temperature for flowers are range between 100 F – 110 F.

How long can a bloom survive in the cooler?

Flowers are perishable items that can be easily spoilt. Flowers live in florist’s places as a guest only, they use their place as a rest stop, and as soon as they are required by someone they leave their place. And their real-life starts in their customer’s abode, so they need to survive there for a long time, almost a week.

It is necessary to know that one must not keep the flowers for more than five days in the cooler, they used to sell them as soon as they can. Processing and rotating the blooms in the cooler is a good practice, which aids blooms in keeping themselves brighter & healthy. Rotating of flowers regularly in the way of first-in and first-out. Always walk on the care and handling guidelines. Florists must be conscientious about the hygiene of the cooler. If the cooler is full and dirty, don’t keep flowers there for more than one day. 

Why flower cooler?

In this hot temperature where humans are melting, getting exhausted, and draining all their energy, flowers being fragile beings are also always on the verge of being dried. The flowers which are freshly cut will get rotten if they are kept at room temperature and ordinary coolers are not able to fulfill the requirement of the flowers to be fresh. As the common coolers run with very dim humidity and flowers got dried and damaged owing to their low humidity. 

Flower coolers have the quality of keeping the temperatures at 36-41 Fahrenheit, which helps in elevating the shell life of the cut flowers and plants. Flower coolers can be customized too, as per the requirement.

Why do we keep flowers in the cooler?

After reading the above, you must be quite clear that keeping the flowers in the coolers helps in extending their life. But why? 

The answer can be found in two processes by which each plant goes through and that is photosynthesis & respiration.

Plants are more sufficient than animals as they can prepare their food, if your mindsight is good you will vividly remember your chapter on biology in which you have read about the photosynthesis process, in this process pants take carbon dioxide, water, and sunrays and then transform it into sugar (for the food)

You must be curious to know how respiration and temperature cause affect the cut flower?

The amount of food or the respiration taken by the plant is solely dependent on the temperature. The lower the temperature, the slower the rate of respiration.

For instance, when a rose is harvested, it will not be able to prepare any food of its own, which will automatically lead to its death. The rose must rely on the food which it has reserved on its leaves. Storing the cut rose flower slows down the rate of respiration and helps in conserving the food which ultimately results in the long life of the rose bloom.

What temperature will be best for the cut flowers?

For cut flowers, the temperature that will make them grin is above 33F, but one must be cautious as to when the temperature drops down to 32F or lower, flowers may face freezing hindrance and can die slowly. Thus, the best temperature for the cut flowers is between 34F and 37F, it’s just a matter of a few degrees as it can take the life of flowers or give a long life to them. Are you aware of the fact that keeping the flowers at a low temperature lowers the risk of flowers getting damaged by the ethylene and reduces the growth of microbes that clogs the stems and reduces longevity?

Tropical flowers

Now you have got the idea that the cut flowers are perfectly stored between 34 to 37F, but tropical is a little different, they have grown up in such hot climates, thus the cooling temperature for example below 50F can kill them immediately. Keeping them at this low temperature can cause chilling injury which affects the physiological process of the plant, thus it is advised to keep the tropical flower temperature above 50F.

Plants keep themselves all fed by making food through the process of photosynthesis, then transform the sugar(food), into energy so that their cells can be alive via the process of respiration. Flowers are kept in cold storage to elevate their long life by slowing their use of food reserves, they have been in themselves while growing naturally.

Cold storage flowers

Cold storage flowers are cut flowers that are kept in cold temperatures so that they can look natural and as fresh as they were in the garden. People get these flowers ordered to adorn themselves or their abode or to make someone smile so wide by gifting them fresh blooms