Winter can be long and sometimes dreary for gardeners. One great way to express your creativity while adding winter interest and curb appeal is by building winter planters.
You can use many of the same planters that you had annuals in over the summer – just make sure they can withstand winter conditions. Plastic, metal, and wood are better than terracotta or glazed pots that can crack when frozen. It is possible to use floral foam for these arrangements, but it is more sustainable to use garden soil. Empty out your planters before they freeze, then add new soil when you are ready to build your planter. Water when you are finished and let them freeze solid.
A quick search on the internet (Pinterest is perfect!) will give you an idea of how these planters can be designed. This is more like floral arranging than gardening, but not hard to get the hang of. Many garden centres will sell materials such as evergreen branches (cedar, fir, pine, etc.) as well as decorations like fake berries, pinecones, and other stems such as birch, alpine huck, curly willow, and magnolia.
You can also take advantage of materials found in your own landscape. If you have pine or spruce trees, a bit of pruning will provide the branches you need for a great foundation. Look for trees and shrubs such as dogwood with coloured stems, lilacs with dried flowers, mountain ash with berries and roses with their hips still on. All provide great contrast and are great used in combination with dried flowers like echinacea, ornamental onions, yarrow, sedum, even bunches of any ornamental grasses. If you are feeling crafty, Christmas ornaments or even dried oranges and pomegranates can be glued onto the end of a stick for that final touch.
If you feel like you could use a helping hand with this project, why not join us at our Winter Planter Workshop that will be coming up in November!
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