GROW YOUR OWN CHRISTMAS
PLANT A FEW THINGS WITH THE FESTIVITIES IN MIND AND NEXT YEAR YOU COULD TURN SEASONAL FLORIST WITH STEMS FROM THE GARDEN
“A little forethought can provide plenty of material for wreaths and garlands”
Stepping out into a frosty garden with a pair of secateurs and returning with bundles of greenery and seedheads is guaranteed to get you into the festive mood. Even now, there is plenty to pick from winter-bare branches and borders: a silver seed-husk here, a wisp of clematis there, plus those perennial favourites, holly, ivy and mistletoe. Boost the yuletide harvest further by planning and planting with the festivities in mind. A little forethought will provide plenty of material for wreaths, garlands and general greenery, and is considerably cheaper than buying from a shop.
CHRISTMAS EVERGREENS
Holly, ivy ( Hedera helix), Skimmia japonica and Christmas box ( Sarcococca confusa) all grow in shade, in ordinary soil and with very little care. Each has glossy green leaves that can be woven into a decorative scheme. Skimmia japonica has the additonal bonus of fragrant white flowers and bright red berries. Christmas box also has deliciously scented white flowers which are followed by glossy black berries.
Ivy lasts for ages when it’s cut and brought indoors, and comes in many appealing variegated forms: ‘Gloire de Marengo’ lights up a dull corner in the garden and the foliage tips and black berries are ideal for wiring into wreaths and table arrangements. Clusters of flowers only appear on mature ivy plants (around 10 years old), but are certainly decorative when they do.
Holly is dioecious, meaning you need male and female varieties to guarantee berries, unless you live in an area where there are lots of gardens nearby. Bizarrely, female hollies (which produce the berries) have male names like ‘Golden King’ and ‘Martin’ while males have names like ‘Silver Queen’, so if you’re not sure, buy a holly in berry. For a holly hedge, you need only one male variety to ‘service’ the females. A holly lollipop in a pot is better for small gardens, just make sure you have at least 45cm diameter pot for anything taller than a metre.
You can plant any of these now, provided the ground isn’t frozen, and even snip a few sprigs this year, although it’s best to let them establish before going in hard with the secateurs. Once cut, they all last without water beyond Twelfth Night, whether wired into wreaths or draped around banisters and hearths, though care is needed with greenery near candles as leaves get quite flammable as they dry. »
Make a hanging foliage ball
The hearth, mantelpiece, banister and lintels are all great candidates for greening, but kokedamas and hanging planters are very cool (see page 105), making a foliage ball a fashionable alternative. Lightweight, it can be hung from the centre of a curtain rail or shelf or you could make several and hang them together in a cluster. You will need a 20cm florist’s foam globe, a clear plastic sandwich bag, a long piece of ribbon and evergreen sprigs cut to the length of a knitting needle and stripped of leaves at the base. Soak the foam and wrap tightly in the bag. Tie a knot in the bag (to attach the ribbon). Aiming at the centre of the globe, push the stripped twigs through the bag into the foam until it is covered. Attach the ribbon and hang up. For a glitterball effect, wire in a few small silver baubles among the leaves. Learn more Christmas decoration skills at Hedgerow & Garden Festive Wreath course with Janet Waters in East Devon, on 7 December, £75, including materials and lunch; theoldkennels.co.uk.
“A pot or several of lush green plants will breathe fresh life into winter homes”
METALLIC FOLIAGE
Festive greenery doesn’t have to be exclusively green. Metallic tones are less Dickensian, more contemporary. If you have a sunny, sheltered spot, try growing an olive tree in a pot and include its silvery foliage in garlands indoors. The spiky leaves of rosemary have silver-grey undersides, and add fragrance to festive arrangements. Likewise, Pittosporum ‘Irene Paterson’, with its black stems and scalloped, variegated leaves, is a florist’s favourite.
The golden foliage of the conifer Thuja plicata ‘Aurea’ makes a great filler for holly wreaths. A sprig or two with a lichen-covered twig and a larch cone found on woodland walks, bound together with raffia, can be used to adorn presents and Christmas-table napkins.
HOUSE PLANTS
A pot or several of lush green plants will breathe life and freshness into winter homes. Cyclamen, with its pure white wings, will keep flowering for ages and is affordable enough to buy several to display in groups. They like cool temperatures, so are ideal in a hall where the door is constantly letting in icy blasts.
A delicate Christmas rose ( Helleborus niger) will bloom earlier if brought indoors, and can be planted out once it has finished flowering. Keep it well watered and not too warm.
Jasmine smells gorgeous and its stems can be twisted into hoops by tying on to bent canes. It likes a cool, bright room and will thrive in humid conditions, which you can create by placing it on a tray full of pebbles in water.
If you think red poinsettia is too much of a cliché, try a white or marbled variety. They look pretty grouped on a silver tray covered with sprigs of greenery, limes and moss. Buy your poinsettia from a trusted garden centre – these Mexican plants are so sensitive to cold their leaves will drop faster than Santa down a chimney if they’ve been sitting in a draught. Water sparingly and mist occasionally.
Christmas cacti (Schlumbergera) look lovely dangling from ceramic hanging planters as their pretty pink flowers open. Hang them where they have plenty of natural light and don’t over-water: they are succulents after all.
BERRIES
Mistletoe is Scrooge-like in its stinginess when it comes to growing from berries, so it is best to buy in bunches rather than propagate yourself. Buy it about a week before you want to use it, as the berries drop quickly, and remember they’re poisonous, so keep away from children and pets.
Easier berry plants to grow in ordinary soil, sun or part-shade, include Cotoneaster ‘Cornubia’ and Cotoneaster ‘Horizontalis’, and the spiky Pyracantha ‘Saphyr Rouge’. The flexible red stems of common dogwood ( Cornus
sanguinea) are ideal for twisting into homemade wreaths. Berries last longer on outdoor wreaths, although birds take them if food supplies are low. Crab apples on the branch look effective bunched in a large vase, or you can buy small red apples and attach to a wreath base with four pieces of florist wire pushed through the centre of the fruit in a cross formation. Trees and bushes can be full of fruit and berries one day, then stripped almost bare overnight by birds, so either cut a few branches in good time and store them in water in a cool place, or cheat and buy artificial versions on wire (£1.75 for six 4cm red apples from michaeldark.co.uk) and artfully add to real foliage.