Jedeg, I'm with you on the long stems, they just beg for a long vertical format, makes a much better shot than cutting the stems off. I would have also included just a little of the ground at the bottom of the stems. The problem with the bokeh is there is not enough of it. It's just a little too close to focus. You should have opened up the f/stop even more to completely blur out the back ground, f/2.8 or f/1.8 probably would have done it. You can lighten up the exposure, add some color intensity, definition and sharpening in post processing. Just my thoughts.
PS: I just saw you were using the 18-55mm. To get the best bokeh with that lens I would have opened it up to the f/4 setting and set the focal length to 35mm or even 18mm and moved in closer. The change in f/stop and the shorter focusing distance would have given you a much shallower depth of field and much improved bokeh.