Flowers of Tawa

The first hour

• Trim the stems. Take 2–3 cm off the bottom at a slant with something sharp — secateurs, scissors, or a knife. A clean cut lets the stems drink properly, where a crushed one doesn't.
• Strip the lower leaves. Any leaf that would sit below the waterline goes. Leaves left in the water go slimy and shorten the bunch's life.
• Use a clean vase. Give it a good rinse first — a vase that's had old flowers in it will shorten the life of the new ones.

Where to put them

• Cool and out of direct sun. A bright spot away from a hot window or a heat pump vent is ideal.
• Away from the fruit bowl. Ripening fruit gives off a gas that makes flowers fade faster. This one catches a lot of people out.
• Cooler at night is a bonus. If you can move them somewhere cooler overnight, they'll thank you for it.

Keeping them going

• Fresh water every day or two, and re-trim a little each time you change it.
• Have a look at the water level. Some stems drink a lot, especially on a warm day.
• If something droops, don't give up on it. Re-cut the stem and stand it in deep cool water for a few hours; a lot of flowers come back.
• When they're done, the whole bunch can go in the compost.

What's in your bunch

Because these are mixed seasonal bunches, they change through the year — whatever is looking its best that week. Some flowers are naturally longer-lived than others, so expect five to seven days from most of it, and a little less from the more delicate things.

Tulips are the main attraction at the moment, and I leave the bulbs on some of them on purpose. When you're ready to put them in a vase, cut the bulb off just above the base of the stem — the flowers won't mind a bit. Then plant the bulb in the garden, in the ground or in a pot, and you'll have a tulip of your own next year.