Hydrangeas are thirsty buggers. If you don’t prep them right, the next morning you’ll find your beautiful arrangement has wilted.

Trick:
Boil some water, and keep it in a bowl near your workspace. Any time you cut a hydrangea stem, dip it in the boiling water for 30 seconds, then add it to your arrangement. This also works to bring back a hydrangea who has already started wilting.

Hydrangeas have a sap that gets released when cut, and it can clog up the stem so they are unable to absorb the water from your container. The boiling water dissolves the sap so they can drink as much as they need, and they stay happy for much longer.

Another trick is to spray the flowers themselves with water. Hydrangeas are able to absorb water through their petals as well as their stems.