November is a beautiful month. The weather changes from the cool first days of fall to the brisk chill that fills the air until December’s snowy cold. As fun as this weather can be for hayrides or bonfires, the chilly weather is terrible for maintaining beautiful fresh flowers. Arrangements should be carefully placed to maintain an optimal shelf life whether to be used as fall flower decorations, centerpieces, fall wedding bouquets, or the many other excellent uses for flowers this month.

Sending flowers to a friend or loved one through with the help of a local florist? He or she is probably very aware of the dangers of leaving flowers unattended in the cold. Providing the florist with the correct contact information is very helpful. When sending flowers to your loved ones, remember to provide the florist delivering your gift of flowers with this information:

• Recipient’s name — this may seem silly or obvious but not always. If the recipient goes by one name to friends and another at work, providing the correct name may make the difference between an accepted delivery and a rejected delivery. It also saves the deliverer time and effort in sorting out the misunderstanding.

• Full and proper address — many large cities and even some small towns have more than one street with the same name. To avoid any confusion, include all relevant information such as the street’s direction (North, East, et al), apartment number, the road’s proper indication (street, drive, avenue, et al), and any other helpful tidbits.

• Best time to contact — Does the recipient attend school during the day? Have a night class? Work late on Thursdays? Take junior to soccer practice on Fridays? It is often helpful to include a designation for delivery such as “after 5,” “at work before 3p,” or “during the daytime.”

• Correct phone number — Most people these days have house phones, cellular phones or both. Including a house number, cell number, work number, or combination of these may prevent the delivering florist from making several trips or arriving at an inconvenient time.

Your gift is very important and should be kept at peak quality as long as possible. Help your gift of flowers maintain its exquisite beauty as long as possible by providing proper information to avoid these flowers being left in the cold.