LIFE OF CUT FLOWERS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22688, 29 March 1937, Page 3

LIFE OF CUT FLOWERS

ne:w way to prolong USE OF SULPHUROUS ACID 'Jin.to are many recipes for prolonging the life of cut flowers —Ijv the use of aspirin or hot water, or by singeing or bruising the steins. However, a new met lied, which has been discovered by the scientific staff of the Hawaiian •Sugar Planters' Association, is claimed to he more effective than any of them. All LluH is necessary is to add two cubic centimetres of sulphurous acid — not to be confused with sulphuric acid —ln each pint of the water in which flowers are placed. A convenient measure for the purpose is an ordinary eye-dropper, which holds about one cubic centimetre.

Sulphurous acid is a solution in water of sulphur dioxide, the pungent gas produced when sulphur is burned. It is not a dangerous liquid. Pint bottles can be obtained at moderate cost in American chemists' shops, and doubtless also in New Zealand. The Hawaiian scientists have obtained best results with large-stemmed flowers, such as lilies, hydrangeas, chrysanthemums and gladioli. They found ' that for the more delicate flowers it was advisable to use the solution at half strength, and to dilute it in every case where the stems showed marks of burning. If flowers last more than two days, the solution should be changed. The method should he applied experimentally in order to find out what strength of solution best preserves a particular flower. It must not be collected to give long life to blossoms which would wilt in a couple of days if left on the plant, but it is said to preserve some others surprisingly.