Most people show appreciation for the deceased by leaving flowers at their graves.
And while some memorials include a sturdy vase that keeps the flowers in place, others don’t. And when there’s no vase, flowers can be blown away, stolen by someone, etc.
Below, I will discuss ways you can secure flowers at the cemetery, so let’s dive in.
Cemetery Flowers Missing: Here’s Why!
Most people blame the wind for the disappearance of their cemetery flowers, especially if the cemetery lies in a naturally windy location. However, that’s not always the case.
Sometimes, the groundskeepers of the cemetery remove the flowers.
If the flower arrangement blew or fell off the memorial, the groundskeepers could have picked it up and tossed it when cleaning up the place.
Also, groundskeepers remove the flowers situated where they need to mow. Lastly, it’s possible that your arrangement violated cemetery rules and was tossed.
In the worst scenario, thieves or vandals could have stolen or destroyed your beautiful flowers. Unfortunately, there’s been a rise in people who steal flowers and other decors from gravestones.
These people usually target items with recycling value, such as bronze vases. However, some even steal the flower arrangements.
Vandals, on the other hand, destroy gravestones and decorations without reason.
In the “best” case scenario, if your flower arrangement consisted of real flowers, a deer or another animal has likely eaten it.
What Should I Do?
First, check the cemetery’s rules for flowers and decorations.
If your flower arrangement didn’t violate the graveyard’s regulations, you could cross off the possibility that people working at the cemetery removed your flowers.
Some cemeteries don’t have specific decoration regulations. If yours doesn’t have rules, you should still ensure your decorations aren’t situated where mowers run.
If the groundskeepers didn’t remove your flower arrangement, maybe the wind or other people did, but don’t worry. You can quickly secure your cemetery flowers with different solutions.
Some people use zip ties, fishing line configurations, and duct tape. However, all these solutions look unattractive and don’t work. The worst part? Sometimes, people damage the grave marker with these homemade contraptions.
Luckily, I’ve made a list of easy and modern ways you can keep cemetery flowers from blowing away or getting stolen, so let’s take a look.
How to Keep Cemetery Flowers From Blowing Away: 6 Easy Ways
If you regularly visit your loved ones at a local cemetery and leave flowers, you’ve likely experienced the frustration of finding your flowers missing.
I get frustrated when I see my flowers missing because they’re not cheap, but I also get sad seeing my loved one’s grave unadorned.
Usually, flower arrangements disappear from graves because of wind, rain, and people. You might think that a cemetery vase will keep your flower secure.
However, cemetery vases can get blown away, knocked out, or even taken. That’s why some people prefer headstone saddles over vases.
Sadly, headstone saddles also don’t stay in place. Unfortunately, the arms of the saddle don’t provide a tight hold. So, what’s the solution to this problem?
Well, I’ve listed various ways to keep your flowers secure in the vase, so make your pick and ensure your flower arrangements never go missing again.
Styrofoam
Florists have tricks up their sleeves for making impressive flower arrangements. One of those tricks is using styrofoam.
Just insert the steams of your flowers into styrofoam and place the flower arrangements in your cemetery vase. The styrofoam will keep your flowers in place.
Finally, add water if they’re real flowers. Your flowers will look incredible and last longer. I’m sure people will think it’s a professional flower arrangement.
The styrofoam will anchor the flowers into your vase, even if the cemetery’s located in a naturally windy location.
Moreover, you can hot glue the styrofoam into your vase. That way, others who visit the grave can also leave their flower arrangements.
If you like this idea, remove grass, leaves, or debris before starting your project.
Floral Tape and Wire
Floral tape and wire can add extra security to your flower arrangement. If you’ve already used styrofoam, don’t worry; you can use these solutions together.
Just wrap your bouquet with a foot and a half of floral wire a couple of times, leaving the long ends hanging down. Then, use the wire to secure the flowers to the styrofoam.
Lastly, wrap your floral tape around the wire to help mask the wire. If you combine these two methods, your flowers will stay in place until your next visit.
Weights for Silk Flowers
If you occasionally visit your loved one’s grave, silk flowers make a great choice.
They’re stunning and last longer. Make sure the cemetery allows silk flowers; some cemeteries have flower rules and only allow fresh flowers left on the gravestones.
You can prevent silk flowers from blowing away from the grave with floral weights.
The best part? You can make floral weights by filling small bags with pebbles, sand, etc. Then, use a floral wire to secure the floral weights to the flowers.
Finally, drop your flowers into the vase. Your flowers will stay inside the vase for weeks or even months.
Anchors
If your flowers have been stolen or blown away by the wind, you can keep them secure with a flower anchor.
Simply adhere the flower anchor inside the vase, then wrap your flowers with floral wire. Finally, secure the flowers to the anchor.
Although floral anchors aren’t thief-proof, they will still deter thieves or vandals.
Cemetery Brick Flowers
A cemetery brick isn’t a real brick. It’s a flower arrangement that’s heavy like a brick and has a vase in a rectangular shape.
Most cemetery brick flowers weigh between 5 pounds and 9 pounds. You can place the cemetery brick flowers on the ground beside the monument or in front of the grave.
Cemetery brick flowers aren’t easy to steal, as they’re heavy. Moreover, wind can’t blow away these flowers because of the weight of the arrangement.
“Stay in the Vase” Mechanism
The “Stay in the Vase” flower holder will keep your flowers secure inside the vase. You can find different flower holders of various sizes.
They often fit most cemetery vases with a diameter between 2.5 inches and 3.5 inches. So, you can easily find one that fits inside your vase.
These cemetery vase tips can help you secure flowers at your loved one’s gravesite or monument without much effort and money. Therefore, make your pick and ensure your expensive bouquet never goes missing again.
Can You Keep Flowers From Being Stolen at a Grave?
You can also keep your beautiful and expensive headstone spray secure at a memorial with a flower anchor system or a label.
Flower Anchor System
The flower anchor system isn’t complicated. On the contrary, it’s simple. There’s a tape with a high-bonding property that helps attach the system to the headstone.
Moreover, it’s perfect for securing headstone sprays.
Most headstone sprays come with a saddle designed of coat hanger-like wire bent to fit over the top of the stone. And while these saddles hold the flower arrangement in place, they’re powerless against strong winds.
That’s where the flower anchor system comes in and saves your flowers.
Just peel off the tape backing, adhere it over the grave and clip the anchor to the bottom of your flower arrangement.
The flower anchor system will easily secure your flower arrangement and prevent it from falling or blowing off the top of regular headstones.
The best part? There’s no need for a wire, fishing line, or wire. The anchor will hold your flowers in place without damaging the grave or flower arrangement.
It’s small and hidden and won’t rust over time. Lastly, most flower anchor systems come with instructions, so you can quickly and easily install yours.
Label
You can print out a label that reads “Stolen from the grave of _____” and wrap it around the middle of the stem.
Attaching a label isn’t one of the most effective ways of preventing theft; still, it’s a good deterrent against thieves.
I suggest wrapping multiple stems to make the stealing process harder. The thieves will have a harder time removing each label.
Lastly, place the labels low enough on the stems that they won’t be viewed when placed in the vase but high enough that a thief can’t just cut them off.
Final Words
Placing a beautiful flower arrangement at your loved one’s memorial is a way of keeping their memory alive.
Unfortunately, wind, rain, and reckless people can destroy or steal your flowers. So, you must find a way to keep your flowers secure.
Hopefully, the methods above can help you secure your flowers or headstone spray and keep your loved one’s gravesite looking lovely for many years.
Remember that these solutions aren’t 100% effective against theft. However, they’re still great deterrents against thieves.
Lastly, it’s better to have some protection than none, so give the above solutions a try.