The Anti-Hay Fever Bouquet

As the Netherlands nears peak hay fever season, it means the sun shines, the flowers bloom, and pollen surrounds you—bringing the risk of hay fever with it if you’re allergic to flowers.

If you're one of the lucky ones, thinking twice before buying a bouquet might have never crossed your mind.

However, according to WUR, between 800,000 and 1.5 million people in the Netherlands suffer from hay fever, so a summer fling with some dining room flowers could leave Nederlanders sniffling for weeks.

Happily, Euroflorist has a solution…

Anti-Hay Fever Flowers for Allergy Sufferers

Suffering from hay fever can be challenging at times, especially if you’re a lover of blooms with a flower allergy. However, we have a solution for those with hay fever and flowers in the house - the new Euroflorist Anti-Hay Fever Bouquet! This is to ensure that even allergy sufferers can experience the joy of fresh flowers, and make your home allergy free.

Featuring a selection of hay fever friendly plants and flowers, including snapdragons, roses, peonies, and daffodils, this bouquet is the perfect solution to those struggling to incorporate nature into their homes without the effects of pollen on sensitive noses.

Here at Euroflorist, we believe that suffering from hay fever shouldn’t put a stop to enjoying the beauty of a bouquet, so not only are these flowers more suitable for allergy sufferers, but they also make for a blooming lovely bouquet when put together.

Each of these are flowers without pollen, or low pollen flowers, with the likes of peonies being pollinated by insects, rather than the wind, making it a great addition to an Anti-Hay Fever Flower Bouquet.

“Thoughtfully curated for both comfort and beauty, our anti-hay fever bouquet features the perfect combination of low pollen and low fragrance flowers, making it an ideal display for allergy sufferers–without any irritation. With the addition of this bouquet in your home, you can worry less about sneezing and sniffling, and focus on enjoying your blooms as they thrive in the warmer months”.

- David Denyer, Flower Expert, Euroflorist

Which Dutch regions will suffer the most from hay fever?

Hay fever season in the Netherlands typically spans from March and lasts until September, and the team at Euroflorist conducted research* into which of the top 10 most populated cities across the Netherlands will suffer the most from hay fever symptoms across the spring and summer months (March to September), by analysing PM10 levels over each month.

PM10—short for particulate matter with a diameter of 10 micrometers or smaller—is a particle that is small enough to pass through the nose and throat and enter the lungs, such as pollen or dust, and when exposed to high levels of this, it can worsen hay fever symptoms.

PM10 measurements tell us how many PM10 particles there are in one cubic metre of air.

During hay fever season, different types of pollen appear which can aggravate hay fever symptoms. These include tree pollen occurring between March and May, grass pollen between June and August, and weed pollen between August and September.

From our research, we discovered that some cities will have exacerbated hay fever symptoms throughout the spring and summer months—when the pollen count is at its highest.

The findings revealed that Amsterdam will be at risk of hay fever the most—with an average PM10 of 24.27 across the months of March to September.

Following Amsterdam is Rotterdam, with an average PM10 of 21.14. And in third place is Nijmegen, with an average PM10 of 19.08 across the spring and summer months.

Overall, it appears that tree pollen is the main cause of potential hay fever symptoms across the country, with the highest PM10 scores occurring during this time, meaning Nederlanders with allergies should prepare with a fresh box of tissues during the months of March and May.

See below for the full table of results:

Symptoms of Hay Fever

So, what is hay fever? Hay fever is caused by an allergic reaction to pollen from trees, grass, and weeds, which triggers hay fever symptoms such as sneezing, a runny nose, and itchy eyes.

People may find they are more sensitive to certain types of pollen than others, and so reactions can vary from person to person.

It is most common during spring and summer when pollen levels are at their highest, though some people may also experience symptoms in early autumn depending on the type of pollen they are sensitive to.

As well as this, weather conditions such as warm, dry, and windy days, can enhance any symptoms of hay fever by increasing the amount of pollen, and blowing it through the air.

Hay fever can sometimes be difficult to distinguish from a common cold. But how do you know you have hay fever? The symptoms include:

- Sneezing and coughing
- A runny or blocked nose
- Itchy, red or watery eyes
- An itchy throat, mouth, nose and ears
- Loss of smell
- Pain around the sides of your head and your forehead
- A headache
- Feeling tired

If you are feeling under the weather, and worried about your hay fever symptoms, visit your local GP for professional help and advice.

How To Care for Flowers When You Have Hay Fever

As with all bouquets, it’s important to take care of your blooms properly, and now that you’ve found the perfect bouquet that won’t aggravate your hay fever symptoms, you need to take care of it to ensure it lasts as long as possible.

As such, we’ve detailed our top 5 tips to keep your anti hay fever bouquet fresh below.

1. Ensure your vase is clean

Grab a vase and give it a good wash with some warm water and washing up liquid.

By doing this, you can prevent any bacteria from growing and give the flowers a head start to a healthy life.

2. Give your bouquet fresh water

After receiving your bouquet, be sure to place it in fresh water as soon as you can.

Our flowers are normally delivered in bud, which helps them to last longer overall, so by putting them in fresh water straight away, you can watch them bloom right from the beginning.

3. Cut the stems

This step needs to be done before you place the flowers in your vase.

Ensure you cut the flowers once every few days, roughly an inch from the bottom and at an angle. This increases the surface area and allows the flower to take in more water.

4. Remove the pollen stems if needed

Whilst this bouquet is specially designed to be suitable for allergy sufferers, most bouquets aren't, and there is always a chance of a pesky pollen particle appearing.

If this is the case, you can easily remove the pollen stems from the flower - but we’d advise getting a friend or family member who doesn't suffer from allergies to do this for you!

To do this, simply pluck the pollen stems out of the flower, and dispose of them.

5. Don’t forget the aftercare!

Whilst these first few initial steps are important to ensuring the growth of your bouquet, it’s important to not neglect them once they start to flourish.

Be sure to keep the water clean and fresh and change it every few days if you need to to prevent any bacterial growth.

As well as this, remove any dead flowers or leaves and prevent the foliage falling below the waterline as these can start to rot, and create harmful bacteria which will shorten the lifespan of your bouquet.