The winter holidays mean different things to different people and they celebrate and decorate accordingly. Some families adorn their homes with themed linens for the bedroom and bathroom and haul out boxes of special dishes and crystal. Others prefer a low-key approach. My hair stylist laughed when I asked him. "I might buy a poinsettia," he commented.
Whatever one's traditions, it does seem the season inspires us to do something.
My favorite outdoor winter feature is container gardens. Other options include wreaths, swags, garlands and filling window boxes if you're fortunate enough to have them (and I'm jealous if you do!). Another bonus–outside container gardens created now will add life and greenery throughout winter.
Following are five steps to creating the perfect winter container garden.
Location, location, location. The main front entry to your home is de rigueur. Nothing is more welcoming to guests than a gracious entrance filled with beautiful containers. Think also about the side or back door that you always use. Other options include flanking garage doors or by entrances to pole sheds or other outbuildings.
Container, style and colors. The first and most important consideration is the container itself. I can't emphasize enough the value of a good pot. Spend the money up front for aesthetically pleasing, heavy-duty containers that will last several seasons–and look good, too.
Then think about the style–or the feeling you want convey–and any associated colors. Here are some ideas. • Northwoods/Lodge: pine cones, twigs and other natural accents. • Traditional: simple greens with red and green accessories. • Elegant: touches of silver, gold and crystal. • Winter: snowmen, snowflakes and cute mittens. • Fanciful: bright colors and whimsical touches.
Gather contents. Now comes the fun part of choosing what to put in the containers. Check out favorite nurseries and greenhouses, in addition to gathering from your own garden. Here are ideas. • evergreens including spruce tips, white pine, Norway pine, balsam fir, Colorado blue spruce, Port Orford cedar, incense cedar. • other greens such as eucalyptus, boxwood and magnolia. • bare branches of deciduous shrubs like birch, curly willow, dogwood (red, yellow or 'Winter Fire'). • fruiting branches of winterberries, roses (hips), pepperberries, junipers or tallow trees. • dried flowers of hydrangea or sedum. • something to add a touch of pizzazz like sparkly, glittery branches. • pine cones, dried lotus pods (very cool!) and ornaments made especially for outdoor use. • strands of small, fairy lights.
Consider design principles and elements. Even though this project is merely winter container garden design, certain design principles and elements remain germane.
Scale and proportion are critical, not only when considering the container size vs. volume and height of its content, but the placement of the container in the landscape. An arrangement 18-inches tall will look silly in a grand, two-story entry.
Simplicity and its counter, variety, also are considerations. A container garden that is too simple is boring while one that has too much variety looks messy.
Another principle that shouldn't be ignored is emphasis, or the use of a focal point. A focal point gives the eye a natural place to rest. It can be as simple as a big bow or a group of pine cones.
Key elements to bear in mind are color and texture. If all components have the same texture–for for instance, feathery and fine-textured–the design could be, again, dull. But add bold boughs of Norway pine and immediately the arrangement has contrast and interest. Consider color, too, even among similar-seeming evergreens. White pine is a soft, light green, Colorado blue spruce can be very blue and incense cedar looks bright due to its yellow cones.
Pot 'em up. Fill the container about ¬? - ¬æ full with potting soil. Old potting soil can be re-used. Re-cut fresh greens and push into the soil. When all components have been added, water thoroughly and keep watering until the soil in the pot freezes. The greenery, for the most part, should stay fresh all winter.
Finally… Decorating with real plants is responsible and sustainable. Plants are a renewable resource with strong, eons-old processes and chemical responses that trigger regeneration. In addition, when redesigning container gardens in the spring, toss old plant branches, boughs, fruits and flowers on the compost pile to foster another, eons-old process–decomposition.
This also appeared in the Askov American, Askov, Minnesota.
