On Tue, 09 Aug 2011 14:35:06 +0100, Jake Nospam@invalid wrote:

On Tue, 9 Aug 2011 14:09:26 +0100, "john thompson"
wrote:

Sometimes shortly after being placed in a glass vase, some cut flowers turn
the water very milky looking.

Is there any chemical that will stop this happening, without damaging the
flowers?

Flowers such as poppies, euphorbia, some dahlias and hollyhocks
release a milky sap - a form of latex - when cut (this is usually an
irritant so best not to let it get on your skin). The usual treatment
is to seal the stems before putting them in a vase. Cut the stem and
then immediately hold the cut end in the flame of a candle or
cigarette lighter or dunk it into boiling water for a few seconds to
seal it. I prefer the candle option as there's no risk of sap dripping
onto my hand (lighter) or messing up a saucepan (boiling water).

(This treatment will not shorten the life of the blooms in water - the
latex would stop them from absorbing water through the cut ends if
left "untreated".)

The milky discoloration in other cases is generally bacterial, and
bacteria often grow on the cut surface, blocking the entry of water.
The Brooklyn Botanic garden, among others, gives a recipe for
cut-flower food on its website. I've been using it, with variable
results, as follows:

Per litre of water, 1 teasp sugar, 1 teasp household bleach, and 2
teasp lemon juice. (I've tried 3 vinegar instead of lemon juice, and
it seems to be equivalent.)

I have the unscientific impression that carnations don't like the
bleach.

Apparently some Irish nuns ran some experiments, and found that simply
sticking to plain water and changing it a lot worked as well as
additives. But they probably had a higher power on their side...

--
Mike.