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Health and Beauty

Flower arranging with lilies

Tips and advice for creating eye-catching summer displays

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Lilies are the perfect summer bulb flower. Modern, elegant and structural, they look beautiful as part of a bouquet, presented in a vase or simply displayed for their fantastic scent. Try these arrangements and create instant impact in any room.

Individual lilies

This is a contemporary arrangement that can be easily adapted for different occasions and to suit every room.

Choose any type of container - a jar, a tin, glasses, teacups and fill them half full of water. Cut one lily flower and bud and place in each of the containers. Leave the pollen intact for this arrangement.

Floating lilies

This is a romantic arrangement, ideal for a bedroom or bathroom.

Fill a wide, low bowl with water, up to the top. Choose a trailing plant such as ivy or jasmine and fill the bowl with this. Cut three lilies just below the flower head and position carefully on top of the jasmine in the water. Try adding floating candles to this arrangement for a night-time look.

Looking after lilies

Lilies last a long time: from bud to maturity is three weeks. If you are buying lilies for an event, it is best to purchase them a week in advance to ensure they are open in time. If you have arranged a vase of lilies and will not be moving them, then leave the pollen on. However, if you plan to move the arrangement it is important to remove the pollen as it can stain the petals. Remove the pollen stamens by pinching them together and pulling them up out of the flower.

Always cut fresh flowers with a sharp knife, since a dull blade can crush the flower stem and reduce the amount of water that can reach the bloom. Also, be sure to cut the stem at an angle as this maximizes the amount of water that the stem can suck up. You may also wish to cut them with the cut point under water (in a sink, for example), to reduce the chance that air bubbles will form in the capillaries of the stems, hampering water uptake.