How To Process Fresh Cut Roses

My Flowers Toronto imports the freshest and best roses directly from Ecuador, which is known for growing some of the most vibrant and finest quality roses in the world.

We receive our fresh roses every Wednesday delivered to us in a big orange box:

     
Inside are 11-12 neatly packed bouquets of red coloured and mixed coloured roses. The first step is to open the box and remove each bouquet and do an inventory count to make sure everything is accounted for, according to the order invoice.

We lay out each bouquet for easier inventory counting and get them ready for individual processing. 

The next step is to open each individual bouquet and start the flower and stem processing phase.

     
When we receive the roses, they are still very leafy and too long. Using our nifty leaf stripping tool, we remove all the leaves and thorns.
     
The leaf stripping process can take hours, depending on how many rose stems you need to process. Usually the florist will leave some leaves near the top for aesthetics, although how much is left is up to personal preference.
     
The next step is very important. The stems will need to be cut to be shorter and more appropriately sized for a bouquet, however, first a bucket with nutrient water needs to be prepared. After the stem is cut, it needs to be put in water within a few seconds to preserve their quality and longetivity.
     
For liquid fertilizer for roses the ratio is 4 tablespoons (0.25 cups)  per 1 US gallon of water (3.8L). 

The nutrient solution is measured out and added to the water bucket. Right after cutting a stem, it needs to be immediately placed in the bucket with nutrient rich water. This will allow the flowers to continue growing slowly and the petals to mature and get nice and plump.  When the rose petals have opened up and gotten big, they are ready to be used in a bouquet arrangement.
     
The most important thing to remember is to cut the end of the stem at a 45 degree angle. This increases the surface area that is in contact with the water once placed in the bucket and increases the longevity. This angle allows the stem to absorb water and nutrients more efficiently. Once the cut is made, they need to be immediately placed in the nutrient rich water bucket. 
     
Once the bucket is pretty full, it needs to be left at room temperature for at least 2-3 hours in order for the stems to properly rehydrate before going into the fridge. 

Stay tuned for more blog tutorials on how we prepare and process our roses.