Living With Flowers

A life full of colourful flowers is a delight and something to treasure.

Here are a few easy tips on how to look after your cut flowers prior to arranging them, so that they last as long as possible. It is called 'conditioning the flowers'.

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• Fill a clean container with tepid, not cold water. Tepid water is absorbed better by the plant.  
• Dissolve a packet of flower food into the water. Flower food helps the flowers last longer and will also keep the water fresh.
• If you have store bought flowers, unwrap them and remove any elastic bands or twine.
• Strip off any leaves which will sit below the water line and as well as any damage leaves or broken stems. Any leaves below the water line will soon decay and shorten the life of the arrangement.
• If you have any broken stems with healthy flowers, you can make a small seperate arrangement with these.
• Cut at least 2.5 cm (1 inch) off the bottom of each stem with a sharp knife or pair of scissors.
• Cut the stems at a sharp angle to expose the largest possible surface area to the water. Cutting the stems will also remove any dried out cell tissues and more water will be absorbed by the plant.
• After cutting the stems, put the flowers immediately in the container with the prepared water.
• The flowers can now be left in a cool place for a few hours or overnight. It will give them time to recover and absorb water.
• If time is short and you are in a hurry make the arrangement straight in a vase following the above steps. 

Have a lovely Floral Day!

xoxo Ingrid