Most arrangements die early for the same handful of preventable reasons, not from natural expiry. A few habits make more difference than any single product.
Cut the stems properly, and keep doing it
A cut flower can only drink through the fresh end of its stem — the moment it's cut, the exposed cells start to seal themselves within hours, which is why flowers left untrimmed for days drink progressively less. Recut an inch off each stem every two to three days, at an angle, using a sharp blade rather than scissors, which crush the stem and close off more of the intake surface than a clean cut does.
Change the water more often than feels necessary
Bacteria in the water is the single biggest cause of early wilting — not age, not temperature, bacteria. It builds in the vase, travels up the stem, and blocks the flower's ability to take up water long before the petals show it. Change the water every two days, and rinse the vase properly rather than just topping it up.
Strip anything below the waterline
Leaves and foliage sitting in water rot quickly and accelerate bacterial growth far more than the flower itself does. Strip anything that would sit below the water line before placing stems in the vase — a five-second step most people skip.
Keep them cool and out of direct light
Heat accelerates the flower's metabolism, which shortens its life. Direct sunlight, radiators, and the top of a fridge or television all do the same thing. A cool spot out of direct sun adds days, not hours, particularly for anything with a naturally shorter vase life.
Do flower food, aspirin, sugar and bleach actually work?
Flower food works, and it's worth using every time — it combines an acidifier (lowers the water's pH to help uptake), sugar (feeds the flower, since it's cut off from the plant's own energy source), and a biocide (controls bacteria). It's the only one of these that addresses all three problems at once.
The kitchen-cupboard alternatives each address one part of the problem, not all three. Aspirin lowers pH slightly but does nothing for bacteria. Sugar feeds the flower but actively encourages bacterial growth if used alone, which can make things worse rather than better. A drop of bleach controls bacteria but does nothing for feeding or pH. None of them is wrong, exactly — they're each solving a third of a problem that proper flower food solves in one.
Reviving flowers that have already started to droop
Recut the stems underwater — cutting while submerged stops air re-entering the stem, which is the main reason a recut alone sometimes doesn't help. Give them a few hours in fresh water somewhere cool before deciding whether they've genuinely reached the end or just needed the reset.
Every Saints order arrives with our own care guide, and The Florist Choice is built from whatever's genuinely at its peak in season — flowers that are fresher to begin with need less rescuing later.
Same-day delivery across London for orders placed by 4pm. Next-day nationwide for orders by 5pm.
