GARDENING fans have shared how they keep their flower bouquets looking fresh for weeks thanks to a common household item.
Nothing can instantly brighten up a room quite like a fresh bouquet of flowers does – not to mention to lovely aroma the home gets filled with.
But those who buy a bunch of roses or lilies every week will also know that after a few days they will start to look a bit sad.
Luckily, savvy social media users have discovered a hack to prevent this from happening – and it's all thanks to a common cleaning product that costs basically nothing.
According to TikTok fans, the answer is simple – just a little dash of regular household bleach, as demonstrated by one woman, Katie Love.
The shopper chucked in some thick bleach to make her £3 flowers from Tesco last longer – but does it work?
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The trick – as bonkers as it may sound – is also all the rage in the florist community, with experts at Walden Floralla saying it's a ''good'' idea to add one-quarter teaspoon of bleach to one litre of water in your vase.
The reason, turns out, is pretty straightforward – bacteria.
''Bacteria will start to grow in the water, turning it cloudy, smelly, and shortening the lifespan of the cut flowers you just obtained.
''What bleach actually does to bacteria is it causes them to unfold and stick to each other.
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''After they stick to each other they stop being able to function, and then they die.''
The best way to keep your lovely flowers lasting as long as possible is to change water every few days – empty the case, fill it with fresh water, add a bit of bleach, optional sugar (acts as food), cut up to an inch off the stems and then place the flowers back into the vase.
Too Much Bleach Will Kill Your Flowers
Like with most things, too much of a good thing can also be bad – and this bleach hack is no exception.
As well as us advising to wear gloves and be careful with bleach, especially around kids and pets, the plant pros urged to ''not add too much''.
If unsure, add less, as going overboard with the cleaning essential will cause the flowers to die ''very quickly''.
Another great tip worth trying out is ensuring there is no foliage – leaves and branches – in the water of the vase.
''They will begin to die and contaminate the water,'' the gurus explained.
''This will result in decreasing the lifespan of your cut flowers and will cause the water to need to be changed more frequently.''
Green-fingered social media users have also raved about a number of other different methods, such as sugar drinks and even money.
One said: ''Put them in lemonade, lasts for weeks.''
''Yep, my Gran used to add a splash of bleach, a pinch of sugar and a 2p coin to flowers,'' a second penned.
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''As an florist to help the flowers even better cut them diagonally that will give them more suction ability,'' someone else chimed in.
''Top from a florist friend is to use a drop of fizzy lemonade/Sprite/7up. No chemical smells,'' another penned.
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