The Right Way to Keep Tulsa Florist Flowers Fresh

 Are you tired of having beautiful cut flowers wither and die within a couple days of their arrival from your Tulsa florist? Try the following tips to help cut flowers last longer.

A harvested flower will stay fresher longer when you cut the ends of the stems off with a very sharp knife or pair of scissors and plunge them immediately into water. When you cut the stem do so at a slant, because a slanted cut exposes more

Congratulations to Chad N., February 12th winner of a Fresh Mixed Vase Arrangement.

Congratulations to Chad N., February 12th winner of a Fresh Mixed Vase Arrangement.  $45 Value

Happy Valentines from Flower Express Longview!

Your one stop shop for all your valentines needs:

Loose Flowers:
Roses, Oriental Lilies, Tulips, Carnations, Mini Carnations,
Daisies, Cremones, Alstromeria, Baby Breath, Limonium,
Ruscus, Leather Leaf and Tree Fern

Arrangements:
Fresh Mix Arrangements, Bud Vases, Tulip Arrangements,
Dozen Rose Arrangements, 6 Rose Vase Arrangements,
24 Rose Vase Arrangements

Balloons
Bears, Plush AnimalS
Chocolate Candy
Talking Roses
Personalized Banners

Holiday Hours

Friday:                                        6am to 8pm
Saturday:                                    6am to 8pm
Sunday:                                       6am to 8pm
Monday (Valentine’s Day):      6am to 8pm

Congratulations to Jackie T., February 11th winner of a 6 Rose Vase Arrangement.

Congratulations to Jackie T., February 11th winner of a 6 Rose Vase Arrangement. $35 Value



Happy Valentines from Flower Express Longview!



Your one stop shop for all your valentines needs:



Loose Flowers:

Roses, Oriental Lilies, Tulips, Carnations, Mini Carnations,

Daisies, Cremones, Alstromeria, Baby Breath, Limonium,

Ruscus, Leather Leaf and Tree Fern



Arrangements:

Fresh Mix Arrangements, Bud Vases, Tulip Arrangements,

Dozen Rose Arrangements, 6 Rose Vase Arrangements,

24 Rose Vase Arrangements



Balloons

Bears, Plush AnimalS

Chocolate Candy

Talking Roses

Personalized Banners









Holiday Hours



Friday: 6am to 8pm

Saturday: 6am to 8pm

Sunday: 6am to 8pm

Monday (Valentine’s Day): 6am to 8pm

February 9th Special, Dozen Wrapped Roses $6

Wednesday, February 9th Special:




Dozen Wrapped Roses $6.



Special expires Wednesday, February 9th. While Supplies Last. No Holds or Rain Checks.

Congratulations, Georgina F., Wednesday February 9th winner of a Dozen Rose Vase Arrangement.

Congratulations to Georgina F., Wednesday February 9th winner of a Dozen Rose Vase Arrangement. $45 Value.




You too can be a winner. Register now for the Flower Express eClub. Winners are drawn every Wednesday for a Dozen Rose Vase Arrangement. Flower Express Longview is also giving away a Valentine’s Day Giveaway Valued at $250.



The package includes:



24 Long Stem Red Roses, arranged in a Vase with baby breath, greenery and a bow

5 Valentine Balloons

32″ Plush Bear with “I Love You” Heart

Large Heart Shaped Box full of Chocolates

“I Love You” Personalized Banner

Tulsa Florists Help To Express Your Feelings Properly

Understandably, the gift of fresh flowers is welcome year around. Valentine’s Day, however, is one of the most important days for bestowing flowers. This brings many people to seek out Tulsa florists on an annual basis. While red roses are some of the most decadently beautiful flowers we have available, there are meanings attached to both these and other types of flowers that are of value to anyone on this very special day.




What’s the secret code connected to red roses?

We all know that getting red roses is a symbol of love, but love and keen affection comes in several levels of intensity and surety. Women are always thrilled when they receive red roses, and who can blame them when they are accompanied by that heady scent?



To assist you in making the proper statement, we’ll consult the age old language of flowers to get you on the right course. In this day and age, it’s also not uncommon for a gal to give her man flowers on Valentine’s Day too. While they don’t expect such a declaration like women do, you’d be surprised how many men are truly delighted to receive a bouquet of fresh flowers. Yes, even those manly man types. It all has to do with the special connection between humans and the unspoken beneficial attributes of flowers.



Selecting the right blooms made easier.

Rather than feeling that you must bestow only red roses, you might find that other Tulsa florist offerings are far more in keeping with your feelings. The following is a list of what different meanings behind the flower messages of roses that signify love, affection and relationship – or other levels of feelings.



Red Roses – the epitome of love and romance

Orange Roses – say ‘I love you vigorously’

Purple Roses – convey ‘I love you forever’

Blue Roses – refer to the purple roses message

Wild Roses – a very daring message of uncontrollable desire

Pink Roses – carry the message of ‘innocent love and happiness’

White Roses – mean ‘I love you not’

Yellow Roses – like ‘yellow with envy’, these mean jealousy

If you’re really head over heels in love and ready to elope, unfortunately the proper flower isn’t in season in February. For that you need Cleome, or Spider Flower, and Tulsa florists just can’t get that particular flower for Valentine’s Day. We will have lots of red carnations, baby’s breath and many other flowers to choose from. You can increase the beauty and color of your message of affection, or tone it down… whatever fits your situation. Flower Express will be ready and waiting for you all weekend to fulfill your Valentine’s Day necessities.

February 8th Special, Dozen Red Rose Vase Arrangement $20!

Join us Tuesday February 8th for Dozen Red Rose Vase Arrangement $20.




One Day Special.



Get your flowers before the storm hits tonight!



Flower Express Longview is located at 9415 E 31st Street, Tulsa, OK 74145

918-628-7673

Congratulations, Billy K, February 8th winner of a $50 Fresh Mixed Arrangement

Congratulations to Billy K., February8th winner of a $50 Mixed Fresh Arrangement.




You too can be a winner. Register now for the Flower Express eClub. Winners are drawn every Wednesday for a Dozen Rose Vase Arrangement. Flower Express Longview is also giving away a Valentine’s Day Giveaway Valued at $250.



The package includes:



24 Long Stem Red Roses, arranged in a Vase with baby breath, greenery and a bow

5 Valentine Balloons

32″ Plush Bear with “I Love You” Heart

Large Heart Shaped Box full of Chocolates

“I Love You” Personalized Banner

Prolonging the Beauty of Tulsa Florist Flowers

How you approach getting the longest stretch of attractiveness from cut flowers in a vase begins at the moment you open the delivery box or floral wrappings upon arriving home. Naturally, you will want to guard against too much exposure to extreme temperatures between walking out the door of your Tulsa florist’s shop and entering the controlled environment of your house. In summer, that means not leaving them in your car baking in the sun in a parking lot while you run more errands. For Valentine’s Day, you definitely don’t want the petals to be damaged by frigid winter temperatures either. It’s best to pick up your cut flowers as your last errand to protect them as much as possible.




Once the wrapping is off, there are certain steps you can take to be sure and get the most out of Valentine roses or any other cut flowers, in any season. The first step is to get rid of the healed over ends of the stems by trimming them at an angle, before putting them in a vase of water.

Pick the right vase.



The ability for air flow to reach the water and move amidst the leaves and petals is important. If your vases are too small to fit the whole bouquet into with some breathing room, its best to split it up into two vases if you want the cut flowers and roses to last as long as possible. Bacteria forms faster in warm, moist places where no air flow is possible. This speeds up the breakdown of flower stems. Next, be sure to add the recommended amount for flower food from the packet supplied by your Tulsa florist.

Placement of the vase is also important.



Protect your roses and flowers from direct sunlight and heat. Remember that when you buy cut flowers, the best ones will have been kept in a cooler. While this isn’t possible in your home, the least you can do is keep them as cool as possible and not put the blooms in a spot where they will get a direct wintery blast of air every time the exterior door is opened.

Change the water every day.



Bacteria start to form in the still water, causing faster breakdown of the stems of your roses, carnations and other fresh cut flowers. Rinse the stems when giving them fresh water and trim the ends of the stems once again to allow them to continue to take up food and water. Otherwise, a sort of callus forms and blocks the critical ‘feeding veins’, closing down their ability to prolong themselves.

Remove spent blooms and dried leaves.



After three days of not being in a cooler, it is natural for some leaves to have dried up and already opened blooms to have gone past their prime. Clipping off the desiccated leaves looks better, but also slows down stem decline. Taking off any spent flowers keeps the energy in the cut stems focused on blooming, rather than trying to set seed. Without roots to keep up their strength, this is super important to any type of cut flowers purchased from Tulsa florists.



As the bulk of your bouquet naturally reduces, you’ll also want to transfer the flowers into a smaller vase.

February 7th Special: Dozen Roses $6

February 7th Special:




Dozen Wrapped Roses $6

Dozen Rose Vase Arrangement $20

Colors availability varies by day. *with purchase of a dozen of equal or greater value. Promotion subject to change without notice.

Congratulations, Cathi E, winner of a Dozen Rose Vase Arrangement!

Congratulations to Cathi E., February 7th winner of a Dozen Rose Vase Arrangement. $45 Value.




You too can be a winner. Register now for the Flower Express eClub. Winners are drawn every Wednesday for a Dozen Rose Vase Arrangement. Flower Express Longview is also giving away a Valentine’s Day Giveaway Valued at $250.



The package includes:



24 Long Stem Red Roses, arranged in a Vase with baby breath, greenery and a bow

5 Valentine Balloons

32″ Plush Bear with “I Love You” Heart

Large Heart Shaped Box full of Chocolates

“I Love You” Personalized Banner

The Trick to Keeping Tulsa Florist Flowers Looking Great

Fresh cut flowers are a fragile item. If they get too cold, too dry or too hot, the time they stay beautiful in a vase or arrangement gets a great deal shorter. Once they come out of the cooler, whether at the standard Tulsa florists’ wholesale supplier, or when your purchase is wrapped up to take home and be sent out on a deliver – the amount of time they remain great looking dwindles just a bit.




The most important thing to know about buying cut flowers is that the fresher they are from the grower, the longer they will last in any home or office. At Flower Express, our roses, blooms and greenery in direct from the growing farm. That’s the freshest cut flowers you can get. As Tulsa flower shops go, you won’t find another one that is a giant walk-in cooler.



Not only does this ensure you are getting the freshest cut flowers possible, it allows customers to walk in and see every flower and greenery spray we have in stock each day. It’s really a lot of fun to be able to see everything you can possible add to your bouquet and mix and match them to get whatever look catches your fancy. Once you take those gorgeous blooms home or arrange for flower delivery, Tulsa area residents can do a few things to prolong the life of any cut flowers.



First, before you put a new bouquet in a vase, be sure to trim the ends of each stem. This allows your blooms to have the ability to take up water best. Use a really sharp knife or scissors. You want a clean, easy cut to avoid bruising the stem tissue or worse, collapsing the veins that allow the uptake of water.



Next, while most Tulsa florists add a packet of flower food in every box or sleeve that goes out the door, some folks think there are even better ways to prolong the life our an arrangement or bouquet. Common tips are to drop an aspirin, a penny, bleach, sugar or Listerine mouthwash into the water. Then there is the changing of water in the vase.



The aspirin, bleach and Listerine remedies are a disaster! The penny trick only keeps petal colors rich, so it’s good to toss one in any way. Sugar does help, but not as much as that flower food your Tulsa florist provides and fresh water. In our next post, you’ll discover what actually works to prolong the beauty of cut flowers.

Congratulations Darrin M, February 5th Winner

Congratulations to Darrin M, February 5th winner of a Dozen Boxed Roses and 3 I Love You Balloons. $40 Value.




You too can be a winner. Register now for the Flower Express eClub. Winners are drawn every Wednesday for a Dozen Rose Vase Arrangement. Flower Express Longview is also giving away a Valentine's Day Giveaway Valued at $250.



The package includes:



24 Long Stem Red Roses, arranged in a Vase with baby breath, greenery and a bow

5 Valentine Balloons

32" Plush Bear with "I Love You" Heart

Large Heart Shaped Box full of Chocolates

"I Love You" Personalized Banner

Of Valentine’s Day and Roses – What’s Behind the Tradition?

It is surprising how many people assume that Valentines is a modern tradition designed to make Hallmark, Godiva and Tulsa florists a bundle. They couldn’t be more wrong. Awareness that Valentine’s Day is all about love couldn’t possibly have escaped anyone’s attention. The fact is that we’ve been celebrating this special day on February 14th for so long that its true meaning and history have been lost. With the passing of time, so has the symbology associated with it.




Red roses, hearts, ribbons and lace surround Valentine’s Day.

This isn’t just because your heart is red. It goes back to beyond the language of flowers and the fact that most of them that convey a message of love are red. The hearts are a more recent part of the Valentine’s Day theme, and come from a time when it was assumed that emotions came not from the brain, but straight from the heart.

Lace is predominant simply, not just because it is a highly feminine holiday. Ribbons are a symbol of remembrance, and were once important year around and not just on Valentine’s Day. There was a time when all women’s hair was bound with ribbon and women carried lace, or lace adorned handkerchiefs. In those days, knights rode off to battle, leaving that fair maiden behind for long spells. These men carried their girl’s ribbons or lace handkerchiefs with them as a sign of love, devotion and remembrance of her patiently awaiting his return at home.

It was an honor for a man to possess a woman’s ribbon or lace hankie. Somehow, this ancient tradition became a part of not just Valentine’s Day, but the very art of floral design as employed by every Tulsa florist and their contemporaries around the world. Ribbon has long been a part of floral arrangements, whether ornamental tucks, streamers, or a lettered banner. And you thought that was just all decoration! In case you’re wondering, we don’t know what happened to the lace tradition, but Hallmark still gets it.



Valentine’s Day began in ancient Rome.

It all began with a priest named Valentine and Emperor Claudius. Soldiers were forbidden to marry under his rule. Claudius felt that such a union sapped a fighting man’s strength. Valentine was secretly marrying them off the record, which got him tossed into prison. He also fell in love with his jailor’s daughter, and before being executed on February 14th, 269 A.D., left her a note declaring his affections and farewell that he signed, ‘From Your Valentine’.

This was the beginning of sending love notes and Valentine’s cards on February 14th. As you can see, Hallmark didn’t invent the Valentine card. The language of flowers, and most especially red roses defining a statement of true love isn’t something cooked up by Tulsa florists or those in any other locations either. Tossing chocolates into the mix is pretty simple to explain, the confection has long been known to be an aphrodisiac. As for roses, they have always been the queen of flowers, and red roses convey the most powerful message of all… without you ever uttering one word.

Flower Express will be open all weekend to help you prepare properly for Valentine’s Day. We’re normally open Tuesday through Saturday, but this special day falls on Monday in 2011. In honor of our customers’ biggest floral needs of the year, we’ve made special compensations with our regular business hours. You’ll find our Tulsa flower shop’s doors open on Sunday and Monday too this year.

Why You Need Tulsa Florists on Valentine’s Day

It’s pretty common to assume that the idea behind the tagline, ‘Say it with flowers’, is a trademark of FTD. This isn’t so at all. Tulsa florists and their fresh arrangements and bouquets are only continuing a tradition that has been with society for hundreds of years. Giving flowers on Valentine’s Day and other special occasions has been going on for so long; the actual meanings behind the act have been lost to common knowledge.




In the dark and misty past of medieval times, flowers were thought to be magical things. Without a doubt, pretty flowers have a profound effect on anyone. During the reign of Queen Victoria, lots of conversation wasn’t a socially acceptable activity, and flowers or sprigs of greenery were developed into a complete language. This is where the whole ‘say it with flowers’ thing comes from.



In the Victorian era, delivering a message with flowers was so important that it became an actual science called floriography. It was based on a secret 18th century language used by the Turks, where a mixed or solid bouquet allowed a person to reveal their feelings. Floriography developed into the study of the true meaning of over a hundred different flowers and plant parts to reveal their underlying meaning.



So there you have it, long before there was a Tulsa florist or such a business anywhere else, there existed this colorful and often scented code that allowed anyone to send or receive a secret message. Even the number of blooms in the bouquet or arrangement carries a meaning, as does the actual colors and types of flowers it contains.



As you can see, it’s not just a modern thing to bestow a bouquet of flowers or roses on Valentine’s Day. But why must they be red? Most of the blooms that express love are red, and it’s been that way since the 1600’s. There are some that signify love that are different colors. Still, billions of red roses are grown just for Valentine’s Day and their modern meaning isn’t lost on anyone, anywhere. So, Flower Express, like all Tulsa florists, wouldn’t dream of opening their doors on Valentine’s Day without a boatload of red roses and carnations on hand.



How many roses should you give that special person? That all depends on the depth of your true feelings, according to the language of flowers the Victorians relied on to convey their message.



10 roses say, “You are perfect in my eyes.”

12 roses say, “Be mine, Valentine.”

24 roses say, “I’m forever yours.”

No matter how many roses you decide to buy at your local Tulsa florist, be sure to pick the freshest looking blooms to ensure your silent message will be enjoyed as long as possible.

February 4th Winner, Jackie V, 24 Red Rose Vase Arrangement

Congratulations goes out to Jackie V. The February 4th winner of a 24 Red Rose Vase Arrangement from Flower Express Longview.




Register now for our weekly drawing of a dozen rose vase arrangement. You can also register for the Flower Express Valentine’s Day Giveaway, package valued at $250.



Package includes:



24 Long Stem Red Rose Arrangement in a Vase with greenery, filler and a bow

5 Valentine Balloons

32″ Plush Bear with “I Love You Heart”

Large Heart Shaped Candy Box

“I Love You” Personalized Banner



Winner will be drawn 8am, Monday February 14th.

Snow Plow Special ... 24 Roses $8

Friday and Saturday, February 4th and 5th, Flower Express Longview is having a Snow Plow Special!

24 Wrapped Roses $8

or

2 Dozen Rose Vase Arrangement $35