Cut Roses in a Vase

Posted by Angela England Apr 28, 2007

I recently purchased two shrub roses, the Double Knock-Out Rose and Pink Knock Out Rose. We planted two of the medium red flowered Double Knock-Outs and one of the Pink Knock Outs on the side of our driveway just in front of the fence between our yard and our neighbor’s yard. The goal was to create a natural barrier between their nippy-snappy little dogs and my two year old son. What I got, however, was more than just that.

My Knock-Out roses have been blooming since two days after our late freeze had me out covering and protecting them. It has been a non-stop show, which is impressive considering these roses are newly transplanted and I’ve cut many flowers for my indoor vases. In fact, I have three beautiful red roses in a vase beside the computer right now.

To have the longest lasting cut flowers pick the roses when they are about halfway opened as they will continue to open even after they are in the vase. Make sure to remove any foliage that would be below the water line to prevent them from rotting in the water.

When cutting roses for indoor flower arrangements it is good to lightly smash the semi-woody end of the stem so that the water from the vase can be absorbed more easily or cut it at a steep angle - just over 45 degrees. If the stem end is quite woody consider cutting a slit about an inch long up from the end of the stem to help with water absorption.

My blooms last about a week sitting here next to the computer. They brighten the entire room and make me smile when I see them. And with my Knock-Out rose bushes still flowering away like mad I am sure I’ll have many more cut flowers to replace them with once I’ve added these spent rose blooms to my compost pile.