How to Get the Longest Life From Your Bouquet

A few tricks from our florists, so your flowers stick around as long as possible.

Cut flowers are a bit like a good houseguest: wonderful to have around, but they need a little looking after or they won’t stay long. The good news is that keeping your bouquet fresh isn’t complicated. A few small habits make a big difference, and we’re sharing our favourites here.

Start with a clean vase

Give your vase a proper wash with warm water and a bit of dish soap before you use it, then rinse it well. Any leftover residue (or old flower gunk) can shorten your bouquet’s life, so it’s worth the extra minute. Fill it with fresh, cool water and stir in the flower food packet that came with your delivery.

Trim the stems

Before your flowers go in the vase, snip about an inch off each stem using sharp, clean scissors or shears, cutting on an angle. This gives them a fresh surface to drink from and helps them take up water more easily.

While you’re at it, strip off any leaves that would sit below the waterline. Leaves left in the water break down fast and invite bacteria — not what we want.

Quick tip: Find your bouquet a spot away from direct sun, drafts, and the fruit bowl. Sun and heat speed up wilting, and ripening fruit gives off a gas that ages flowers faster than it should.

Keep the water fresh

Check the water level every day and top it up as needed. If it starts to look cloudy, don’t just add more. Dump it out and start with a fresh batch.

Every two or three days, change the water completely and add a fresh scoop of flower food. It keeps bacteria from building up and gives your flowers the nutrients they need to keep going. And if you spot any wilted blooms or stray leaves in the water, pull them out. One bad apple really can spoil the bunch.

A few more things that help

  • Keep your flowers away from ripening fruit and veggies.
  • Steer clear of heating and cooling vents.
  • Avoid busy spots where the temperature shifts a lot throughout the day.
  • If you can, move your bouquet somewhere cool overnight — it really does slow things down.

None of this takes much time, but it makes a real difference. Look after your flowers this way and they’ll keep brightening your space for days longer than they would otherwise.

Our flower promise

Not 100% happy with your order? Give us a call within 48 hours and we’ll sort you out with a replacement bouquet, no questions asked.

You’ll often notice your flowers arrive still in bud. That’s on purpose. It means you’re getting the freshest stock possible, with the most life still ahead of them.