Fill your containers with greens for the winter
It's time to clean out the mums and other fall annuals from hanging baskets and pots. Instead of leaving them bleak and dreary until your garden center offers pansies in early spring, consider arranging an assortment of greens in them. In addition to welcoming holiday guests, they add color to pots all winter.
There are hundreds of beautiful greens containers on your local garden center benches if you are not a do-it-yourselfer. But with a little practice, your greens arrangements can look as beautiful as those by professional designers. Follow these steps:
If there is root-filled soil in the container, greens can be inserted directly into the soil. The roots remaining from past occupants will hold stems in the way a wire frog supports fresh flowers in a vase. Empty containers should be partially filled with potting mix, leaving about 4 inches at the top for water-soaked blocks of oasis. These can be purchased at many garden centers and craft stores. Once wet, they are easy to cut so they fit snugly in the pot.
Garden centers have boxes and bins overflowing with a large assortment of lush greens. If you have evergreens needing pruning in the backyard, greens can be harvested from them. No matter where greens are procured or what kind they are, make a fresh cut on stems before inserting into pots. They will continue to take up water from the soil or oasis until it freezes.
Add tall, stiff-stemmed greens for height. These go at the back of the pot if it will be positioned against a wall, or in the middle if it will be viewed from all sides. Spruce tops, shore pine and pine or balsam boughs are all good choices.
Next, choose a green for the edges. Red western cedar is lovely draping over sides. If width is the priority, use balsam, juniper or white pine.
Fill in the middle with greens of assorted textures and colors. White pine has a soft, fine texture; silver or Fraser fir sports blue needles; incense cedar boasts yellow berries that resemble golden raindrops dripping from its tips.
Other materials add textural elements that contrast beautifully with greens. Boxwood, oregonia, red huckleberry and magnolia tips are gorgeous combined with greens. Grab your pruners and head out to the backyard for dried flowers of sedum, yarrow or hydrangeas.
After the base is pleasing, add additional components like pine cones, lotus pods or pomegranates. Pine cones and lotus pods might be natural, tipped in white paint or dusted with sparkles.
Sticks are next. Red twig dogwood, birch, curly willow and redbud willow can all be utilized. Painted branches in a rainbow of colors — glittered or plain — also are available.
The final step is to add berries. There is a wealth of varieties available: some real, some artificial. Winterberry and pepperberry are the most popular types of natural berries. Artificial berries are available in red, burgundy, white and green. Make sure the artificial berries chosen can stand up to winter weather. Some plastic foam berries “pop” in cold temperatures, revealing their white foam center. Stay away from those.
There is little or no maintenance for greens containers. In periods of warm weather, water them to keep the soil or oasis moist until they freeze solid. Remove any greens that prematurely brown to keep containers looking their best.
If you are still unsure about creating a greens container, check out the class schedule at your favorite local garden center. Many offer make-and-take workshops where you will be guided by designers.
• Diana Stoll is a horticulturist and the garden center manager at The Planter's Palette, 28W571 Roosevelt Road, Winfield. Call (630) 293-1040, ext. 2, or visit planterspalette.com.