Buy Fresh Cut, Boxed or Potted
What is in the Florist category, how to make cut flowers last, and what to check before you send them to someone.
The Florist category on DoorToShop covers fresh bouquets, flower boxes and container arrangements, potted indoor plants, and the things florists sell alongside them — vases, candles, balloons, soft toys, chocolates and message cards. It runs from a two-dollar card to arrangements in the hundreds.
Two things separate flowers from everything else you can order: they are perishable, and they usually go to somebody else. This page covers what each type is, how to keep cut flowers going once they arrive, and the handful of details worth getting right before you send them.
In the Florist Category Now
A sample across the range — prices and availability update live, and each card shows the store selling it. The text under each item is the seller's own description. Open a listing for photographs, sizes and what is included.
Fresh Breath Bouquet
$57.00
Gardenia Greeting Limited
My Sunshine Bouquet
$79.00
Gardenia Greeting Limited
Natural Garden Bouquet
$119.00
Gardenia Greeting Limited
Core Love Flower Box
$105.50
Gardenia Greeting Limited
Flax Bag Flower Arrangements
$90.00
Gardenia Greeting Limited
Monstera Deliciosa
$52.00
Gardenia Greeting Limited
Calathea Makoyana
$44.00
Gardenia Greeting Limited
Candle Gardenia Scent 15cmH
$16.00
Gardenia Greeting Limited
Glass Vase 6cmx22cmH
$8.00
Gardenia Greeting Limited
Birthday Balloon Collection
$5.00
Gardenia Greeting Limited
Large Fawn Teddy Bear 40cmH
$40.00
Gardenia Greeting Limited
This is a small sample of a much larger category. Product descriptions above are the sellers' own words, reproduced as written, and are not endorsed or verified by DoorToShop.
The Main Types
Fresh bouquets
Hand-tied and wrapped, and the largest part of the category. Many are sold in size tiers — standard, premium and larger — and the photograph usually shows the biggest one, so check which size you are actually buying. Blooms are whatever is good that week, so the exact stems vary.
Flower boxes and container arrangements
Arranged into a box, bag or container that holds its own water or foam, so nothing needs unwrapping and no vase is required. They travel better than a wrapped bouquet and are the easier choice when nobody will be there to put flowers in water straight away.
Indoor plants
Potted and living rather than cut, so they carry on long after a bouquet would have finished. Check the pot size in centimetres and whether the decorative pot in the photograph is included or is a separate item.
Balloons, bears and chocolates
The add-ons a florist sells alongside flowers — balloon collections, soft toys and boxed chocolates, mostly from a few dollars up. Add them to the same cart as the flowers rather than ordering separately.
Vases, candles and tealight holders
Homeware sold in the same category. A vase is the common add-on, because a wrapped bouquet needs something to go into at the other end — worth adding if you are sending to someone who may not have one.
Message cards and gift cards
Small printed cards, usually a couple of dollars. Write the message at checkout so it goes with the flowers rather than arriving separately.
Making Cut Flowers Last
How long a bouquet keeps depends on the flower, the season and the room it stands in, so nobody can promise you a number of days. What you can do is remove the things that shorten it — and most of that happens in the first five minutes after they arrive.
Trim the stems before they go in water.
Take two or three centimetres off the bottom of each stem with sharp scissors or a knife, cutting at an angle. The angle stops the stem sitting flat against the bottom of the vase and sealing itself off. Do it again each time you change the water.
Strip any leaves that would sit below the waterline.
Leaves left underwater rot, and that is the main reason vase water turns cloudy and flowers go over early. Nothing below the water except stem.
Start with a properly clean vase.
Wash it in hot soapy water first, even if it looks clean. Bacteria left from the last bouquet is what shortens the next one. Fill with cool fresh water, and use the flower food sachet if one came with the flowers.
Keep them cool, out of direct sun, and away from the fruit bowl.
Sun and heat — including a heat pump or a radiator — bring flowers on quickly. Ripening fruit gives off ethylene, which ages them faster still, so the kitchen bench next to the bananas is the worst spot in the house.
Change the water every couple of days.
Fresh water, a quick rinse of the vase, and a fresh trim off the stems. It takes a minute and it is the single thing that makes the most difference.
General guidance for cut flowers, not instructions for any particular arrangement. Where a florist gives care instructions of their own, theirs are the ones to follow.
Worth Checking Before You Order
- Check which size you are buying. Several bouquets come in tiers, and the photograph is usually of the largest one.
- Expect some variation. Florists work with what is fresh that week and substitute accordingly, so if a particular flower or an exact colour matters, tell the store before you order rather than after.
- Check whether a vase is included. Many bouquets arrive wrapped, and a vase is a separate item in this category.
- Give a full address and a daytime contact number for the recipient, not for yourself.
- For a dated occasion, order ahead and confirm the delivery date with the store. Flowers are the one thing that cannot simply be sent again the next day.
- Sending to a hospital or a workplace: check first that the ward or the office accepts deliveries, and that someone will be there to take them.
- Scent matters to some people, and some flowers are strongly perfumed. If that is a consideration, ask the store for something lighter.
- If the recipient has pets or small children, check the plant listing. Some indoor plants are not suitable around them, and the listing or the store will tell you.
How to Order
Browse.
Browse the Florist category on DoorToShop. Each listing shows the local store that has it.
Add a card message and any extras.
Message cards, vases, chocolates, balloons and soft toys go in the same cart as the flowers.
Add to cart.
DoorToShop is a multi-merchant marketplace, so you can add items from several local stores to the same order.
Check out.
Pay securely by card or net banking. There is no minimum order value.
Receive your order.
The store dispatches the next business day and courier delivery typically takes 1–3 business days. Track your order on the web or in the DoorToShop app.
Delivery is $5 as a base fee, with free delivery on orders above $69, and there is no minimum order value. Enter your postcode at checkout to confirm delivery coverage for the recipient's address, or read how DoorToShop works.
Frequently Asked Questions: Flowers
What is in the Florist category on DoorToShop?
Fresh hand-tied bouquets, flower boxes and container arrangements, potted indoor plants, and the gift add-ons florists sell alongside them — balloon collections, soft toys, boxed chocolates, scented candles, glass vases and tealight holders, and message cards. Listings change as stores add and sell stock.
How do I make cut flowers last longer?
Trim two or three centimetres off each stem at an angle before they go in water, and strip any leaves that would sit below the waterline. Start with a vase washed in hot soapy water, fill it with cool fresh water, and use the flower food sachet if one came with them. Keep the flowers cool, out of direct sun and away from heat pumps and ripening fruit, which gives off ethylene and ages them. Change the water every couple of days and re-trim the stems each time.
Will I get exactly the flowers in the photograph?
Close, but not stem for stem. Florists build arrangements from what is fresh and good that week and substitute where they need to, and many bouquets are sold in size tiers where the photograph shows the largest. If a particular flower or an exact colour matters to you, tell the store before you order.
What does "florist's choice" mean?
That the florist picks the flowers rather than you. You choose the size and the price, and they build the best arrangement from whatever is freshest on the day. It usually gets you more for the money than specifying stems, at the cost of knowing exactly what will arrive.
Do bouquets come with a vase?
Usually not — most arrive wrapped, and vases are listed separately in this category. Flower boxes and container arrangements are the exception, since they come in something that holds water already. Check the listing, and add a vase to the same order if the recipient may not have one.
Can I add a message card, chocolates or a balloon?
Yes. Message cards, boxed chocolates, balloon collections, soft toys and candles are all listed in this category and go in the same cart as the flowers. Write the card message at checkout so it travels with the order.
How long do indoor plants last compared with cut flowers?
A potted plant is alive and carries on indefinitely with the right light and watering, while cut flowers are finite by definition. If you want the gift to still be there in a month, a plant is the answer to that question. Check the pot size and whether the decorative pot shown is included.
Can I send flowers to a hospital or a workplace?
Check first. Some wards restrict flowers, and an office needs someone there to accept the delivery. A quick call to the ward or the reception desk before you order saves a delivery that cannot be completed.
How far ahead should I order for a birthday or an anniversary?
As far ahead as you can, and confirm the delivery date with the store. Flowers are more time-sensitive than most orders, and a date that has passed cannot be fixed by resending.
How fast is delivery?
Orders are dispatched by the store the next business day and typically arrive within 1 to 3 business days by courier. For a dated occasion, confirm timing with the store when you order. Enter your postcode at checkout to confirm delivery coverage for the recipient's address.
How much does delivery cost?
The base delivery fee is $5 NZD, with free delivery on orders above $69 — the exact amount is confirmed at checkout. There is no minimum order value.
What if the flowers arrive damaged or in poor condition?
Contact the store the same day, with photographs. Flowers are perishable, so this is the one category where telling the seller promptly genuinely matters. Returns are handled by the store that sold the item, and nothing in a store's policy limits your rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993. Contact DoorToShop support if you need help reaching the store.