How to keep your cut flowers fresh

Have you ever been sent an expensive bunch of beautiful flowers only to find that after a couple of days the freshness has gone?

Here a a few tips to help you get the best from your bouquet.

• As soon as you receive the flowers, trim all of the ends of the stems diagonally with a sharp Stanley blade. Using scissors will crush the fine tubes within the stem which are needed for the uptake of water and food.

• Remove any foliage which will be below the water line that is likely to rot and cause disease.

• Put your freshly trimmed flowers into luke warm water. Once stems are trimmed they will start to scale over and the warm water will help to prevent the tubes closing up.

• Add little of the willow hormone solution (if you have some available) to combat bacteria and keep open the plants arterial system. It takes only an hour for 10 million bacteria to form in the water.

• Add a copper penny or a copper plumbing fitting to the vase. Copper is a natural fungicide and will help to prevent bacteria forming.

• Change the water daily and if the stems have enough length then trim after 2-3 days to freshen the water uptake.

• Feed the water with a spoonful of sugar.

• Keep your flowers away from a window sill of direct sunlight and ensure their is good air circulation - do not leave in a draught as this will speed up transpiration.