Floral arrangements make great gifts this time of year, but a local nursing home wants folks to know certain arrangements aren't allowed in their facility.

As Meghan Hayward tells us, there are some alternatives.

Tis the season to give.

And at the top of that list are floral arrangements.

But the staff at Stillwater Healthcare in Bangor want folks to know that residents can not have certain greens in their rooms because it's against state fire code.

"We just ask if it could be artificial greens. Fresh flowers are okay. It's not the fresh flowers that present the difficulty, it's the fresh greens."

Activities director Jennifer Weisheit says they keep the facility a lot warmer than most people would keep their homes, which can pose some dangers with floral arrangements.

"The biggest safety hazard is the start of a fire. And the greens themselves dry out so quickly."

But there are some alternatives.

"What we can do is we have permanent botanical arrangements. Some people call them silk arrangements in seasonal colors. And that is a great alternative. That is something that you don't have to worry about watering and there's no fire concerns."

And if you're worried that it won't have that christmas look, there's no need to be.

"We can still make it very Christmas looking. We have talented designers here that can make it happen."

Weisheit says nothing makes the residents happier than when they receive a bouquet , and she says they hate to have to take it away.

So they suggest making sure what they are sending is allowed, before ordering and paying for it.

" And what does this mean to you to get this floral bouquet? Does it make you happy? Yes."

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