I love blue flowers. There really don't seem to be all that many of them. Irises are some of my favourites. I love how wild they seem. They don't last well in vases which is a shame, but somehow I can't help but admire that sort of willful obstinacy in refusing to be tamed.

If you do want to try and improve the vase life of your irises here are three quick tips:

• use sharp pruning shears to cut the irises as a 45 degree angle
• add a floral preservative to the water (you can make your own with lemon-lime soda!)
• keep the vase out of direct sunlight