How to Store Peonies in the Fridge for up to TWO MONTHS
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- Опубліковано 2 лип 2021
- Peonies have a short and dramatic season, and nobody knows this better than a bride or florist who is planning a wedding around them. Here in our zone there is about a 2 week variance in when they bloom... sometimes the middle of May, sometimes not until Memorial Day.
If you want to have a peony filled wedding, we recommend setting the wedding date for AFTER peony season and then using this method to store peonies until the big day (up to two months). Optimal storage time is about a month, but I've had success keeping them for two months with this method.
Or perhaps you just want to be able to enjoy their season a bit longer, space out the peony glory a little.
Folklore has it that somebody's grandma always had a fresh peony bouquet at Thanksgiving, and her method was to wrap them in newspaper. We've tried that as well, and it works beautifully, but it didn't extend the life of the flowers beyond that of the paper towel method.
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One needs a fridge for daily/main food, one for bulk shopping food, one for drinks and now one for flowers! Peonies are so gorgeous and this is a neat way to keep them!
Just wrapped another bunch per your teaching, hope they last till August again! 🤞😁
Thanks for the very interesting presentation!
I'm always sad when peony season is over because they are on top of my 5 favorite flowers list,
(right above Lillies of the Valley,) I can never get enough of their scent and unbeatable beauty.
So, I've been doing this for years. But I've found if you cut the peonies just when color has begun to show around the whole 'ball' I find this much better than waiting til they have opened as shown in the video. Although her method is works well, you will end up with more stems to store in the end so you can avoid the the marshmallow step.
Keeping the flowers in a tighter ball makes it much easier to prevent the ants who swarm the flowers before and after they open from taking a ride into places they don't belong. I just cut off the lower foliage and dump a bundle of the heads with foilage too, in a cool bucket of very clean water and then shake them off gently. Then I'll pat them gently with paper towels, stems too.. They don't need to be completely dry. I wrap them in damp, not soggy, newspaper or paper towels and place them either in a green bag or plastic bag. I've had them open beautifully after 4-5 weeks in the fridge. One thing to be very careful of is once peony stems are put in water with the temperature above 50* & sometimes warner, they can open fully within 2 hours. If they are in the 'ball' stage it will take 2+ days for them to fully open. Another great way to preserve the open flowers is to dry them. You can find the directions online.
That’s interesting. We had a neighbor who sprayed for ants on his peonies because he viewed them as a pest, only to discover the buds never opened. There are theories that ants, wasps, etc. help eat the sticky sap and allow them to open. Harvesting them at a later stage means most of the ants have moved on, but we’ve found that a little shake with them turned upside down usually suffices. 👍🏻 Thanks for your tips. It’s interesting to hear other methods!
The flowers behind you and the baskets on the wall🙌🏻💐 So lovely
I had no idea you could store peonies for at least a month! Thanks for the info! 🌸
Your garden, hats and music makes me think of Jane Austen and old Elizabethan England. Or what I imagine it was like. So lovely.
Yes, bring on more content. I love it. Ty you ladies.
Looks like i need to shop for more peony plants to try this 👍🏻
I love your garden! Thanks for the great info:)
Yeah! Good to see a new vlog from you lovely ladies.
Great content! Thank you! I love watching your informative videos!
We all just love your videos. Keep them coming girls. You do a wonderful job.
That giant vase of peonies in the background! Breathtaking!
Another lovely video full of beauty and knowledge.
I can’t wait to try this.
That is incredible! Thank you for sharing!
Gorgeous - this is so good to know! It seems like my peonies are just beginning to mature when our heaviest spring rain/wind storms hit. I'm always rushing to gather a few to enjoy before they are ruined!
I loved the very end of your video when you two get together with your arms full of peonies! I clapped! :) Great video. Very helpful. I started my peonies only this year, so I've got a few more years to go before I have a bumper crop. I have to enjoy yours for now. :) Thanks for sharing! Beautiful video.
More! Love you two
Thank you so much Im going to try this for my wedding next month!!
Just unwrapped my peonies! Thanks to your tips I have spring again in August! ❤ty
Brilliant- really helpful - thank you
Excellent-Thank you so much for the great visuals too-- im heading out to cut!
Super clear video ty
I was pretty shocked with how long my peonies lasted in the fridge! I stored them with a little water in the bottom of a tall storage bucket and got about 3 weeks before I stopped using them at market. Virtually no loss! I am planning to use my leftovers to trial out a fun arbor / arch installation. :)
Yes, that’s an excellent method of holding peonies! Less stress on them, I think. We would totally do that too if we had the cooler space. Isn’t it so fun to have some to play with after the season is done?
Game changer 🤯
So envious her in S FL. They are only used here for weddings at $4 a stem or more!
Thanks for sharing. How long after taking out of the fridge will they take to open? Thinking of giving for a gift in July and I have some ready for cutting
I like to think outside the box and go against the grain....few days ago i cut some Peony (at a public area in my neighborhood, very 1st time) i didn't know how to care for them so i turned to UA-cam, i had many small unopened, immature buds on the stems with the fully mature ones, based on the suggestions (that the buds have to be a certain size to fully open) i felt bad discarding the baby buds, i decided to keep them and placed them in a small vase of water 5/29/22 & add some cut flower food.
*I AWOKE ON 5/30 & TO MY SURPRISE ALL THE LITTLE BABIES POPPED OPEN, BY 5/31 MORE ARE OPENING....I HAVE ALL THESE PUFFY BALLS OF BLOOMS, SOOOO BEAUTIFUL!!😁 🤗🥰💖
Thank you for the storage idea. I missed it this year but will for sure try next year. Also once in a vase for a couple days , should I re-cut the stems? Will they last longer that way? I do put them in my fridge at night.🇨🇦
Yes. Always recut the stems of any flower (except for a poinsettia, because they need their cut singed slightly to keep their sap from coming out. They make wonderful cut flowers and last for a couple weeks,
at least..
Every other flower needs to be able to take in more water in a vase. I always cut the stems at about a 45* angle while I hold the stems under water. This will prevent air bubbles from forming, even just for a couple seconds. Make sure your old vase is absolutely clean because bits of foliage left in it will begin to form algae which will kill the flowers sooner. Some people feel that if you do this every other day the flowers don't need to use any packets of flower food or other substances to keep the stems taking in water.
Roses absolutely need this treatment. You should also remove any thorns on the stems because water will enter the stems and that can help the flower last a few more days.
Where are your hats from? Love them!
Can I use the fridge with all my food in it? Thanks!
Question: I am storing my peonies in the fridge, but some of the stems are starting to dry out and shrivel up near the top. What do I do??
My peonies are just hitting marshmallow stage, many still hard balls. We haven’t had any rain in two weeks. I’ve watered well twice. Should I place in water prior to storage? the marshmallow buds look fine on the plant have not cut them yet.
Hi! I’m planning on doing this for an event. If I want the peonies to look their very best should I take them out of the fridge the morning of, day before, or another time?
Not sure when your event is but take a look at another video: “How to get peonies to open fast” by Kay’s flower school.
You can also dry peonies or using in crafts
Wow. I feel so much smarter after watching your videos! Thank you! Do you have a method for removing ants from your peony harvest?
I cut my peonies at midnight, that way I get no ants!
That was my question too. I cut a beautiful allium one day at the farm. Driving home, the bugs came pouring out! I had to throw it out the window! 😂😂😂
Is there any other flower i can store this way?
How long does it take the peony to open after you take it out of the fridge?
In my experience, they blew open very very quickly.
It could depend on how long they’ve been stored and what stage of firmness or softness the peony was picked.
Can irises be stored the same way!
No, irises should not be stored the same way as peonies. (The result will be quite different, and it won’t be pretty.)
It was never mentioned where to put them after you’ve wrapped them. Shall I assume the fridge?
Yes, the fridge. The title mentions it but we must have missed saying that in the video.