Abundant evergreens spruce up decorating alternatives for holly-days
Sure, it’s nice to deck the halls with boughs of holly — but don’t overlook other festive evergreens when you want to add flair to indoor or outdoor holiday decorations.
You can find a huge variety of season-brightening boughs and branches at nurseries and online retailers, or even your own backyard.
Such botanical accents range from the familiar, such as pine and spruce, to the unusual (yes, Microbiota decussata, I’m talking about you).
Here is a sampling of evergreens that can grow in central Ohio backyards or whose harvested branches you might find for sale; all make lovely holiday decorations on their own or in combinations.
• Boxwood, a small, dense shrub often used in formal plantings, features small, round leaves that offer a beautiful contrast to larger or coarser foliage.
Be aware, however, that some people find boxwood’s odor unpleasant — so you might not want to use it in a centerpiece for Christmas dinner.
• Creeping juniper, that unsung workhorse of urban berms and parking-lot “landscaping,” looks positively exotic when snipped for use at Christmastime.
Old Gold is a cultivar with a distinctive golden hue; Blue Rug features bluish foliage.
• English ivy, a ubiquitous climber and ground cover that can be invasive, looks surprisingly elegant when cut for a seasonal arrangement. Unlike many other greens, however, it wilts quickly if you don’t keep the cut end in water.
• Golden Mop Japanese falsecypress, a shrub common in landscape plantings, boasts cordlike foliage with a striking golden hue — ideal for an accent among greens and blues.
• Holly comes in several varieties, but for a classic, spiky-leaved evergreen with red berries that grows in Ohio, choose American holly.
• Pine and other common Christmas tree branches, such as fir and spruce, are staples this time of year. You can find pre-cut branches at retailers from grocers to big-box stores; harvest a few from your yard; or, if you need to prune your cut Tips for success
• Use evergreen branches both indoors and outdoors in whatever type of arrangement strikes your fancy — such as in a vase on a table or in a frost-proof container at the front door. • Don’t pair cut branches with burning candles, which could pose a fire hazard. Instead, use flameless LED candles.
• To prolong the life of cut greens, keep them away from heat sources such as fireplaces and heating vents. • Dress up a plain, storebought wreath or swag with a few contrasting sprigs from your yard. tree to shape it, use the extra branches for decor.
• Rhododendrons and other broad-leaved evergreens make an excellent foil for those with sharp needles, but they can be finicky in central Ohio.
If you’re one of the lucky gardeners who can grow “rhodies” or similar gems, such as Japanese pieris or mountain laurel, harvest a few stems to add contrast to a cut arrangement.
• Siberian cypress — aka Microbiota decussata or Russian arborvitae — is a versatile ground cover shrub that features feathery foliage ideal for filling or softening a winter arrangement.
Diana Lockwood, a freelance writer covering gardening topics, posts on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ mrsgardenperson.