I Live by This Golden Rule for Trader Joe's Flowers (and They Last Forever!)

During nearly every Trader Joe’s run, the last thing I add to my basket is a little bouquet of flowers. It’s no secret that TJ’s has great prices on flowers and an ever-revolving door of cute plants, from a mini succulent garden to a bunny-shaped planter. And, when it comes to the floral options, it’s so easy to make an expensive-looking flower arrangement out of $15 worth of blooms. But when I don’t have time to dream up a fancy bouquet and simply want to add a pop of color to my home, I have one simple rule: Buy some Craspedia.

The bright yellow, perfectly spherical flowers are also called Billy buttons or Billy balls, and they look like something out of a Dr. Seuss book to me. Trader Joe’s sells them as a bundle of filler for $3.99, and they do make excellent accents to any bouquet. But the first time I bought them, I noticed that they outlasted every other flower in the vase by months. As the other petals dropped and stems drooped, the Craspedia stood tall. Of course they dried out, but they never lost their sunshiney color or looked any worse for the wear. I ended up putting them in a few stem vases to add a little touch of color and whimsy throughout my apartment.

Now, whenever I spot them in the flower section at Trader Joe’s, I pick up a bundle, knowing they’ll keep my bouquet looking lively for weeks to come. While there are several ways to keep cut flowers fresh for longer, I can usually barely be bothered to refresh the water in the vase often enough, let alone remember to put my bouquet in the fridge overnight. But this golden rule is beautifully low-maintenance and blissfully easy to remember: Just add some Craspedia to your cart. 

And if you’re looking for an equally simple rule to guide your plant-buying process, check out this trick for keeping plants alive that works every time.