Cut flowers look great in the home

Greenhouse and gardening enthusiasts should ensure the foliage is as exciting both inside the house as well as outside, it has been suggested.

According to the Daily Mail, a home can benefit from an area dedicated to cut flowers, but it is essential to be careful when picking them from the garden.

"Tact and caution are essential, when picking, if you want to avoid damaging plants or leaving ugly gaps," it explained.

With flowers, it is best to take varieties that survive well in water and bloom over a long period.

"Plant more than you need so you can thin the population for the house and leave plenty to enjoy in the garden," the article added.

Starting annuals now in a greenhouse is a sure-fire way to make them mature more quickly and produce more robust plants, it concluded.

More and more people are growing their own produce, according to the latest IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index which revealed a 56 per cent increase in the amount spent on home and garden items in January in the UK compared with the same month the year before.