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what plants will you use from the garden as Christmas decoration?
gardeninglily1
Posts: 424
in Talkback
I'm making a fresh christmas wreath and have pine, garrya elliptica, malus red sentinel and holly in the garden to use. What garden plants do you use in the house this time of year?
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Ooh I wish I knew someone with a physalis! I like the reds/oranges and prefer the natural look - I usually go for the offcuts from the Christmas trees being sold by local farm. They look lovely in a vase with pine cones.
I like to make festive decorations a few days before the Big Day. It's a fun part of the Christmas ritual and makes the house look and smell good. I use whatever I can find from the garden: holly and ivy, both plain and variegated, snippets from the conifers and evergreens, red twigs from the dogwoods, pine and larch cones. I add a bit (but just a bit!) of seasonal bling with gold paint or glitter on cones, small baubles wired on twigs, artificial holly berries, (as you can put them where they need to be, on the ends of the leaf spray) and some carefully selected, realistic looking fake Helleborus flowers and tiny poinsettias. I am not a 'flower arranger' and often hate what they do to their flowers, but I do love playing around with different colours and effects. I use oasis and a variety of containers and display them round the house and they can last well into the New Year if they are natural looking and not too Christmas specific. By then my amaryllis, and then the hyacinths will be ready to take over the job of cheering up the wintry gloom and then it might not be too long before snowdrops!
Chinese holly, eleagnus, pyracantha, cornus, lavender, rosemary, euonymus, brachyglottis anything that has berries and flowers at the time of making the wreath.
Last year I sprayed some allium seed heads and they looked wonderful, but didn't get round to it this year.
I leave certain shrubs which are either evergreen or have attractive berries (such as cornus, prunus, conifers etc) in a slightly untidy state after my autumn clear up. Then I don't feel guilty snipping off the overgrown bits to bring into the house for decoration.
We have quite a long fireplace / mantel shelf which I like to dress with fairy lights, lots of greenery, berries, tea-lights in glass holders and a few clementines.
This year I might even be able to pick a bunch of flowers - lots of stuff in flower - both early and late together.
The b***y rhodie at the front door. The buds look good sprayed gold, and put along the window ledges with other greenery and white lights. Static of course - not flashing. They're the Devil's work
I have loads of conifer and pine cones etc which I use too, but frankly, any excuse to chop bits of the rhodie
I use assorted bits of those for the wreath - I have a solid one of woven willow and just add 'stuff' to it.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I have donated to my daughter who is better at flower arranging than me, some holly and ivy,I am pleased to see my roses coming out again and my clematis "john huxable" blooming but she is not having those
Come on - Fairy - 'fess up. You secretly like those coloured ones that flash in time to the carols and Christmas songs they play - don't you?
Just kill me now....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Principally bay, (woven into a dogwood plaited base), plus dried (glycerine treatment) hydrangea heads. The dried robins are hardy perennials filched off the main "decco box" surpus. Felted stockings made by MrsM when our little boy was six - now going on 38!! - there's value, eh??