Winter's here, it's the ideal time to get busy and have fun transforming your home into a welcoming oasis of colour and beauty in the midst of a cold grey outdoors. Sarah Holland of the Flowers & Plants Association is your green-fingered host in an exclusive webchat that will show you how just a little floral savvy can help you to do just that. Not only will Sarah's creative advice bridge the gaps in your inspiration, she'll explain how keeping flowers and plants in the home has major benefits not just aesthetically, but for your whole family's health.

Christmas is nearly on us and it goes without saying that we want our homes to be as warm and welcoming as we can possibly make them. Beyond the invaluable tips Sarah will be dispensing, she'll tell you also about a series of video guides available from the Flowers & Plants Association that offer detailed pointers on particular plants and flowers that work best in specific rooms. So for bathrooms go for Orchids as they love the steamy atmosphere. Mother in law's tongue in the office as they don't require too much love and attention – or water! You'll be amazed how a couple of plants or a vase of flowers can really makeover the look – and feel – of any room in your home, fast.

Yes, it's time to give those lonesome Christmas trees a little company. Log on to the webchat, and submit your questions about how to make the most of the natural beauty of flowers and plants in your home this season – and for 2009.

Sarah Holland joins us live to discuss how flowers and plants can change your home – it's fast and so simple.

For more information visit www.flowers.org.uk

H: Nicola Bonn, host
S: Sarah Holland, Flowers and Plants Association

H: Hello and welcome to the Homes and Gardens show brought to you today by the Flowers and Plants Association, I'm Nicola Bonn. Now the conditions may be miserable and a bit cold outside, but winter is actually the ideal season to get busy and have fun transforming your home. Now with Christmas just around the corner it does go without saying that we want our homes to be as warm and as welcoming as possible. Well today we're going to take you through some really simple ways of doing just that using flowers and plants. Not only can they improve the aesthetics of your home, but certain plants can actually offer health benefits as well. Joining me today to discuss this and much more is Sarah Holland from the Flowers and Plants Association – welcome Sarah

S: Thank you Nicola

H: Now Sarah, I know that you're going to do lots of tips today, you're going to show us how to make some of these beautiful things we can see, but I want to say first of all you've recently made a series of video guides haven't you?

S: We have

H: About flowers, about kind of cheering up your house. Can you tell me a bit more about them?

S: Yes certainly. Basically they're a series of video guides and we've used plants in the home to enhance the features there. Like you say they generate lots of health benefits, but they really help to brighten up your home if you, for example want to spruce it up a bit and you haven't really got the money to splash out on decoration

H: It's good credit crunch stuff isn't it?

N: Exactly yes

H: It is amazing, I mean how some people just don't do anything with their home and then they just put a few flowers around their lounge and suddenly it's like a different place

N: And it really makes a difference. For example if you think big, if you're doing something with your living room, we used a large palm and it really made a difference and brought some of the outside in. So always think big, invest in a big plant because it would take years for you to grow a little one

H: Well shall we have a look at this video that you made?

S: Of course

Video Footage

H: Sarah it's absolutely incredible, I must say I adore what you did with the dining room

S: Thank you

H: It's just fantastic. Now obviously the dining room, incredibly ornate, particularly that massive kind of candelabra that you did. Can you show us what you did with the dining room, give us a few tips, maybe a bit simpler?

S: Of course, yes. Well that's the ideal decoration if you're having a really, you know a great dinner party when you need to impress your boss or maybe even for a wedding, but what we've got here is a really simple version that you can create at Christmas time. What I've done is I've bought two Christmas wreaths, and I've just put them back-to-back on top of the arms of the candelabra. Now you can use a spruce wreath or a holly wreath even, but this one's a really nice one to use because what I want to do is add bits to this, and you can see already I've added some Christmas baubles. All I've done is attach those to some wire, made some wire arms, twisted it around and literally pop them in. and now to attach these flowers what I've got is a cymbidium orchid and as you can see that's a huge great beast of a flower

H: That is stunning

S: So these are actually such a bargain, because you may pay, you know from £6 for a stem but they will last you for weeks and you've got all these individual flowers that you can then work with. So we've used these rubber – top vials here, we've just filled those with water, we've covered them with sisal, and then we've secured the sisal with some decorative wire. This is called bullion wire, and it's specifically formulated to use for decorative purposes. So you don't need to be a pro really. And we've just made some wire arms there so that we can fix it to the wreath. So what I'm going to do is attach some of these cymbidium orchids. I'm just simply going to cut that on a slant from the stem, so you can see you get many flowers just from a single stem there. And that's a nice sharp point to feed into the hole. So I'm just going to feed that in. and I'm using the counter just to keep me nice and stable. And then all you need to do is insert that into the wreath and the wire will keep that nice and secure

H: Oh it's just beautiful, and so original, because I just find all these decorations you can buy, they're nice but they're just all the same, and I think you know if you –

S: Yes you really make it unique by doing that

H: Yes if you're having a Christmas party, definitely someone's going to be impressed by that. So what else have you got to demonstrate today?

S: Well we've also used amaryllis in the living room, and you'll notice that I showed how to cut it, so you would lay the flower on a chopping board and make a clean cut, and then I wrapped some sellotape around the edge

H: Yes

S: The reason for that is, as you can see, amaryllis have a tendency to curl at the bottom. I'll just show you there with the stem I have. This is one that we've cut already, and you can see the ends are starting to curl up, so to stop them doing that you just wrap some sellotape round, that will prevent that happening. But what I've done here is I've gone with the flower's natural tendency to do that, and all I've done is I've made some incisions in the stem and then let it curl up

H: Like a ribbon

S: Exactly. So all I've done is I've followed where it's already naturally curling and splitting

H: Yes

S: And then that looks really funky as you can see at the bottom of the vase. Now if you want that shorter you can just literally, quick sharp cut, and do the same.

H: And I know you said that because it's so hollow, the actual stalk, you can then put – the water will just kind of get sucked up, it will live for ages –

S: Exactly. This will not affect the lasting capabilities of the flower

H: No. And it looks so nice, it really – it just looks amazing

S: Yes and you can also add extra bits that you've torn off into the water just to enhance the effect, but these are great plants – great flowers to use because you've got the buds to open up, so again they will last for weeks

H: Ok well look we've got some questions in, lots of questions in in fact, and the first one's from Dave, and he's saying here – oh Dave! "I'm hoping to get some results with the ladies thanks to mistletoe. What other plants and flowers will go down well with the more sophisticated ladies." Hey I go for mistletoe and I'm a sophisticated lady! But yes, what other flowers, this time of year, if you want to show somebody you like them?

S: Well if he's got someone to impress there is actually a scientific reason behind why roses are good for Valentines Day and romance. There is the chemical in them that gives them their distinctive scents which actually our bodies produce when we fall in love. So if he's got someone to impress then go for the roses, they're certainly my favourites

H: Do you know next Valentine's Day I'm going to say to my boyfriend, get me some roses darling because there's a reason why you need to!

S: Exactly.

H: Lucy here, "I really like orchids. What's the best way to look after them. I've noticed a couple of the leaves lately have gone a bit yellow and don't look that well."

S: Ok she needs to give her orchid a feed, you can get special orchid foods. She probably needs to give it a little bit more light and it could also indicate that she's either under or over watering it. She needs to give it an egg cupful of filtered water every ten days

H: Ok. Orchids, I mean they can last for ages can't they?

S: Exactly, so it's a shame that her leaves are turning yellow, but hopefully it'll perk right back up for her

H: There is hope. Carly – "I'm concerned about buying flowers out of season as won't they have had to have travelled for miles to get here and that's not very good for the environment."

S: What Carly can do is she can focus on UK grown poinsettias for example for Christmas. She can also look at scented narcissi and chrysanthemum. But she also needs to consider that there's a lot of flower farms in developing nations, and by buying our flowers from them we're actually helping those nations to develop, and there has actually been some research that shows that growing flowers in the natural conditions, somewhere like Kenya, has exactly the same carbon footprint as growing them under glass in Europe

H: Oh thank you for that. Now we've had loads of people just saying things about poinsettias. I love them personally, some people don't. If you're a bit tired of poinsettias and you want something kind of an equivalent, especially at this time of year, what do you go for?

S: Well there's lots of things you can go for. I would say match your plants to the conditions it's going in, and buy a flower or a plant that you enjoy having in the home. What we've got here is some hyacinths, this is a great alternative. What these are great for is they're fragranced. The fragrance is actually used in top designer perfumes, as either the base or the top notes

H: Really?

S: Things like Paris, Anais Anais, so this is a really sought after fragrance, and you can just introduce that in your home by bringing a few stems in. The great thing about it as well is it's an eco-friendly, or more of a healthy version of room fragrance, which is obviously laden with chemicals

H: Do you think it would be good to put them in the bathroom?

S: It would be ideal in the bathroom. I don't see why there's any reason why you shouldn't have flowers in the bathroom

H: We will talk about different rooms later

S: Exactly

H: I have actually, going back to poinsettias, I have a bit of a problem with mine, in that it – I look after it, I keep it warm, I give it its water, but it just looks really, really ill. It doesn't like me, any time I'm near it goes aaahh, like that.

S: Ok

H: Any advice?

S: Well you need to keep them away from draughts. When you buy them, make sure that they're really well wrapped from the place you're buying them from, because even if they catch a little bit of cold on the way home, they won't like it, so make sure that you're keeping it – kind of water it every five days, make sure the soil dries out in between waterings

H: Ok

S: And like I say keep it well wrapped and keep it warm

H: Another question, I mean I've just got my Christmas tree – sorry I'm asking all my own questions here! And I just want to keep it looking well. Unfortunately I didn't get one with roots, I've just got one that's been chopped off at the bottom. Is there a way that I can make it last all the way into – what is it, the 1st January?

S: Yes give it a spray every day, that's all you need to do, you just need to keep nice and moist, because obviously your home is going to have central heating at the moment

H: Yes

S: And that's just going to dry it out and make the needles drop

H: Ok

S: So give it a good old spray

H: Keep it bright –

S: That will keep it going

H: Question from somebody else now, this is Simone and she says here "I've bought plants in the past but have struggled to keep them. Have you got any tips for plants that are really durable and withstand little care?"

S: Yes I would suggest that Simone buys an ivy, we've got them here. They require very little care, in fact I used these in the video guides and that was filmed a month ago, and I haven't done anything to them since

H: Oh and remind me of the symbolism of ivy?

S: Ok, so they symbolise a nice, happy, fertile marriage, so they're really nice for a marital home, and they also symbolise friendship as well. But these are great, and also a mother-in-law's tongue does not mind what you do with it, whether you over-water or under-water your plants, over-love them or under-love them, it will thrive for you, so that's another plant for her to think about

H: I like the sound of them. Now earlier on we did mention bathrooms, and I want to ask you now really, going round my house, are there certain plants and flowers that suit certain rooms in the house, from an aesthetic point of view and also I guess from a health point of view?

S: Yes definitely. In the bathroom in the video guides we used some orchids and an antherium, and they really like to be moist, they really like a humid atmosphere which is why we've selected those. But you can also think about every room in your house, there's not need to not put plants in every single room in your house, even if it's dark or cold. So think about in a children's room for example, you can have a Boston fern. Now these are really good at reducing airborne dust, so if your child's asthmatic it's really going to help there. Also they reduce noise so playtime and after school would be –

H: Really?

S: Yes. Significantly lessoned

H: How do they do that?

S: Because they've got lots of little leaves and they absorb the noise

H: That's fantastic. So bathroom, all the humid kind of orchids, things like that

S: Yes

H: How about, you did mention the study in the video guide – tell me a bit more about the study

S: The study, yes what we've used in the study are plants that are particularly good for your health. All plants will remove toxin from the air, but the ones we've used are particularly good in that circumstance. So we've used a peace lily, and a Sansevieria which is a mother-in-law's tongue which I just mentioned, and like I said that needs minimal care and it really is good at air purifying

H: Can I ask you why it's called a mother-in-law's tongue, it sounds quite scary

S: I think it's other name is steel plant so I think it's something to do with the steely nature of mother-in-law's tongues

H: But like any good mother-in-law it takes care of your health as well

S: Exactly

H: Right Sylvia's been in touch saying "I used to buy loads of flowers, but I'm a bit worried about my finances at the moment" – aren't we all? "What top tips would you have for creating floral displays on a budget?"

S: On a budget I would say always, always go for plants. Treat them like a long-lasting bouquet – like here we've got poinsettias already in a little pot – it came like that. So you just need to buy three and they will last you for weeks rather than days

H: Really? So it's just putting it in a pot will keep –

S: Exactly

H: Brilliant. Now I can't help but notice these beautiful jewels that you've made with flowers –

S: We have

H: Can you just tell me how you did it –

S: Yes

H: And what you're going to use them for and –

S: Basically we've used hyacinths again. Going back to the fragrance, they also have aromatherapy properties, so they're really good for calming down say a nervous bride, hence the tiara. You could also think about, you know, a bit of a decadent Christmas party as well. But what I've done is I've made a bit of a simpler version, because I understand not everyone's got time to wire a load of beads and hyacinth. And what we're going to do is actually give this to you –

H: Oh, thank you!

S: And – for you to take home – and we're going to wrap this twice round your head. And it's a simplified version of this

H: I feel like a fairy

S: And fragrant – exactly, and shouldn't we all? But the fragrance will just, you know, really uplift you. And I think that they're just particularly suitable for jewellery. You can also use them, use this as a necklace. So this is a hyacinth stem here, and I'm just picking off the flowers

H: Ok

S: And they're called pips. And threading hyacinths on wire like this is called pipping, so I'm just going to thread those onto there, just to finish this off as you can see, I've done most of it already. And I've just interspersed some pretty beads just to bring the colour through

H: I'd never have thought of doing something like this

S: But again for Simone, I mean something like this will make her flowers go so much further. I've used two stems to create all of these

H: Yes. And you could almost, I mean apart from using it as jewellery or putting it round your head, you could almost kind of hang it from a mirror or something couldn't you, in the house?

S: Exactly

H: It's so beautiful

S: There's so many things you can do, and if she wants to be creative, this is a great idea

H: Do you – I mean how long are those little flowers going to last for? Maybe a day or something?

S: Obviously they're not in water, but this I made literally 24 hours ago and it's still looking good, so I would say that would last two or three days.

H: That's fantastic

S: Same with this, as long as your flowers are well-conditioned. So I'm just going to give this to you

H: Oh thank you. What shall I do – what do you want me to do? Put it round my head?

S: Yes I think if you wear it like a –

H: Like a fairy queen

S: Like a fairy queen, exactly. So I'm just making a little hook there, to make it easier

H: And think actually of all the health benefits, if you're having a big night out, and you've got that round your head –

S: Exactly

H: You won't get a hangover –

S: You're just going to feel so, so much better for the whole night. Look at you!

H: Ah, I love it! I feel so beautiful

S: And you look it too!

H: Now I just want to ask you a few more tips for Christmas ok, so say at the dinner, any other plants and flowers that would look beautiful – maybe you've got problems, you know what the family's like at Christmas, flowers that are going to cheer people up. Any more ideas that you've got?

S: I would say – I mentioned before, but scented narcissi are a lovely one. Yellow is obviously a colour for cheerfulness and they've got such a lovely scent that they really will cheer everyone up

H: Yes and also I loved what you did on the table in your video. Just putting flowers even near the cutlery made such a difference

S: Yes, just cutting a little bit off and accessorizing the table in that way. If you notice we also popped a little, tiny miniature plant, like these poinsettias would work just as well, in a pepper, so –

H: Yes

S: So you don't need to use, you don't need to worry about whether you've got a container. You can use produce and it's really good fun

H: I love, I do love the pepper, and I suppose you'd live longer if you were a flower in a pepper

S: Exactly

H: Keeping it natural. Sarah, thank you so much, I've got some absolutely brilliant tips from this

S: Thank you

H: And I'm going to wear this all day. Now listen if you do want more information and you want to see the brilliant video guides in full, the place you need to go is flowers.org.uk, and I hope you have a very fragrant Christmas.

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