By now you’ve probably heard of preserved roses (you’re here, after all!) If you’ve researched the product, you’ve probably also realized the price tag on a preserved floral arrangement is higher than that on live arrangement. But is it worth it? And how long do preserved flowers actually last? Here we’ll give you a little peek into our proprietary preservation process to help you understand why and how it works and how long you can expect preserved floral arrangements to last.

Our Preservation Process

At Le Jardin Infini, we start with only the best raw materials. That is, we choose the finest, fullest, and most vibrant live roses available. The roses are carefully cut when they are at their prime. To preserve the flowers, we rely on a natural plant process called capillary action; that is, we use the tubes of the stem called the xylem, which normally carries water throughout the plant, to instead transport our special liquid preservative.

The gentle floral preservative we use is a combination of glycerin and other natural plant elements. To ensure our flowers maintain their beauty, we immediately place the freshly cut rose stems into this mixture and wait a few days, working in batches. During the waiting period, the liquid travels from the stem up and into the petals, replacing natural sap with our special preservative compound. When sap is replaced with liquid preservative, the result is that color vibrancy, petal shape, and petal flexibility are maintained.

Drying vs. Preserving Flowers

One question we get a lot is if our preserved roses are really just dried roses. In short - the answer is NO. The “science” behind dried roses is essentially allowing the liquid from flower petals to dehydrate, completely drying them out. During the drying process, petals lose color, sometimes browning, and become very brittle and fragile. This is a sharp contrast to the vibrant and supple appearance of preserved rose petals which, in addition to their beauty, are far less likely to break that their dehydrated counterparts.

Roses Made to Last

So how long will preserved roses last? The answer depends to a degree on external factors, like the humidity of the area where they are kept and their location relative to sunlight. All things considered, you can expect that your flowers will maintain their vibrance and petal flexibility from 1-3 years, and afterward begin to appear similar to dried roses. Our preserved bouquets draw to mind the special occasion on which they were received, and will, for a year or longer, appear just as lovely as they did on that day.