Hydrangeas and Alum- What's that all about ?

Question: J I recently saw a clip on YouTube where a woman was making a Hydrangea wall. She used alum to dip the stems before inserting them into the foam. What does that do?Answer:Alum is a pickling spice that comes in a powder form... you can buy it an grocery store...A Trick that we've shared in my 2nd Book - Bloom 365 (You can buy it here)... is to cut the hydrangea stem and dip the end in the Alum powder before placing in water...The coating of Alum makes the hydrangea draw more water... however I would not advising the Alum dip before placing into foam...The process is done when cutting the hydrangeas initially... you may consider it... if you are having trouble with the Hydrangea hydrating...BEST ADVICE: I use "Rose Pro Hydration" Solution from Chrysal on my Hydrangeas... and that seems to make them super stable.. so I don't have to worry about the Hydrangea...I mix the Rose Pro Hydration Formula according to the directions on the back of the package... and I use ICE COLD Water... then allow my Hydrangeas to set in the solution for at least 3 hours... no more than 48 hours... Then I move them to regular ICE COLD Water and place in the cooler...I typically don't use Flower Nutrient in the Hydrangea water... after I use the Hydration solution...Seems that the Alum... is something that can be used to trouble shoot... it's seems to work if you are having trouble... but it's not something I do all the time! Hope this is helpful!- J