How do I look after a bouquet of roses?

Have you been given a bouquet of roses and want to know the tricks that will help you enjoy these splendid flowers for as long as possible?

Roses need special care because they are flowers with woody stems.

Before anything else, there are three extremely important things you need to know about what makes any flower lose its freshness faster.

Ambient temperature.

Ambient temperature is the main factor that speeds up the loss of freshness.

At the perfect temperature of 6-8 degrees Celsius, a bouquet of roses will keep its freshness for up to 21 days. Every extra degree speeds up that loss of freshness.

At the opposite extreme, a temperature close to freezing (or below it) will damage these delicate flowers beyond repair. Temperature shock, going from very warm to very cold and back again, is every bit as destructive.

Cleanliness, changing the water and re-cutting the stems.

You need to keep the vase holding the flowers clean. You must change the water regularly, and you need to refresh the gateway through which water reaches the flower by trimming the ends of the stems.

Flower food.

In the absence of an ideal temperature, flower food is the greatest help you can give them. It slows the loss of freshness and can extend the beauty of fresh roses for up to 12 days.

Use flower food if the bouquet you received came with a sachet of it.

Follow these steps to get the most out of the bouquet of roses you have just received.

1. Prepare a clean vase with fresh water.

The first step is to prepare a vase suited to the size of the bouquet and fill it with fresh water, enough to cover the ends of the stems.

If you received one or more sachets of flower food, add the contents to the vase and stir. Ideally, use one sachet per litre of water.

2. Unwrap the bouquet and cut the tie at its base.

It is very important to undo the bouquet, because this gives the flowers the room they need to thrive. If the bouquet is a large one, you can split the flowers between two or more vases. And if you have had the pleasure of receiving a huge bouquet of large-headed roses, you will be able to enjoy the luxury of these flowers in several rooms.

Cut 2-3 centimetres off the ends of the stems at a 45-degree angle to maximise contact with the water. Use a sharp knife, a craft knife or a pair of garden secateurs if you have one to hand.

Careful! Do not use ordinary office scissors, as they will crush the stems.

Check for and remove any leaves that end up in the water.

3. Change the water in the vase every day.

Ideally you should change the water in the vase every day and clean the inside of the vase with washing-up liquid every few days.

If you have added flower food, we recommend changing the water only every 2 or 3 days. That is on condition that you add fresh flower food at the next change.

4. Trim about 2-3 centimetres off the stems every few days.

Every 2-3 days, or whenever you notice the stems turning black, we recommend refreshing the cut. Using a knife, a craft knife or garden secateurs, take about 2-3 centimetres off the ends of the stems at a 45-degree angle. The purpose of the angled cut is to increase the surface in contact with the water.