How do you care for cut foliages?

Answer 1

When you bring home the foliage, cut the stems shorter by an inch. For fine stems such as ferns, baby's breath, or bear grass no further treatment is necessary;simply put the foliage into the nutrient solution. If you have no nutrient solution, a good substitute is a simple lemon-lime soda. Mix 2 tablespoons into a pint of water. Remember, plants aren't on diets, so don't use diet soda. For heavier foliage, find your hammer. Holly, ginko stems, magnolia branches, anything with a woody stem should be hammered gently to break up the cellulose in the stem (about an inch). Then soak in lukewarm water to soften the cuts(and the hammering). Put into nutrient solution for display. If you wish to use this material for wreaths, or cut boughs for display, remember that it is NOT fireproof. Such materials should be discarded no more that 4 days after use as it is a fire hazard. An option is to purchase water pics. These are vials which will hold a limited amount of water, so check them every day for water levels. This will extend the life of your foliage to about 2 weeks.