As a florist, there is a lot you have to consider when it comes to keeping your flowers beautiful and fresh, from the day they arrive till the day they are sold. And even after that moment, you want your customer to be able to enjoy your flowers as long as possible.

We put together a list of care tips that you might find useful, so you can focus on the creative side.

• Always buy fresh flowers to enjoy them as long as possible
• Ensure that you have enough cut flower food for the size of the bouquet and the most suitable vase (min. vase size is 1 litre) – this should be attached to the bouquet you buy.

• Always buy the freshest looking plants so as to enjoy them as long as possible
• Position the plant plant in a light place, some plants like direct sunlight, most don’t (see plant label if possible).
• Avoid draughts and keep away from direct heat sources.
• Ensure that there is enough water available for the plant. Use rainwater if possible.
• Soil must be kept moist, prevent excess of water at the bottom of the plant.
• Remove wilted flowers and leaves
• Enjoy your plants!

• Purchase plants of sufficient maturity and quality
• Pay attention to the activity of the plants e.g.

Each sachet of cut flower food contains exactly the right amount of nutrients to make your flowers bloom beautifully and keep the stems and leaves strong. It's super important that you mix the food correctly with the right amount of water, so always check the instructions on the package.

This well-known phenomenon is the premature wilting of the flowers that are sensitive to vascular blockages, such as Rosa, Bouvardia, Chrysanthemum and Gerbera.

Leaf yellowing is a sign of insufficient natural plant growth hormones, regulating the production of leaf green in the leaf. Before being cut, the mother plant took care of the production of these hormones. After cutting there is a shortage of these substances due to interrupted ‘juice flow’ from the mother plant.

Leaf yellow is nothing other than loss of “leaf green”, also known as chlorophyll. A number of factors influence the yellowing such as ethylene and light (see table).

Plant development and its duration, in connection with climatic conditions and other factors, are different for each plant type and cultivar. Deviations from the optimum care will lead to a shorter shelf life for the consumer. Post-harvest treatments do not have the power to influence the genetic potential of the plant and are not formulated as such.