Budding bursts of cheer

Receiving flowers can make your heart skip so it stands to reason that having them around must be good for you. According to a Harvard study, flowers in the home feed compassion, chase away anxiety and boost energy. Researchers also found that just looking at them first thing in the morning can make you feel happier and more positive about the day. And if you are perkier at brekky, you are likely to transfer those feelings to others. The scientists call it “mood contagion”.

The kitchen, since we spend most of our waking time in it, is a great place for flowers. A few suggestions...

✿ Cut stems short and place in everyday containers – tea tins, glass coffee jars, salt and pepper shakers, jugs, an old teapot....

✿ Citrus-coloured flowers will always make you feel sunnier. If you don’t mind mixing fruit and flowers, put spring flowers in a narrow cylinder vase and place it inside another, wider, cylindrical glass container filled with lemons or limes.

✿ Line up bud vases or bottles on a kitchen table or along the sink and fill with blooms in the same colour tones.

✿ Go for the “wow” factor with a massed display of one type of flower tumbling out of a large jug.