Winter Containers

The post Winter Containers appeared first on Miss Smarty Plants.

I know it seems so early, but now is a really good time to make your winter containers. These simple instructions will show you just how easy it is to add some holiday cheer and interest to your garden with very easy winter containers.

At the end of the summer and a good part into fall, it seems like this is a now or never type of project. As in, if I don’t do it now I will never do it!  These bare planters need some sprucing up and today was the day to get it done.

I’ve always had good intentions of doing this, but it seems like it just hasn’t taken priority. I started by gathering some broken branches from evergreens around our home, looking for branches that were crossing or were just starting to get in the way of the lawn mower. I know that a variety of textures and even colors will make this more interesting and was able to find a nice assortment.

The centerpiece for these planters on each side of our front steps are some bright red upright branches. A special type of dogwood perhaps? Nope, just some sucker branches from a tree that I spray painted red last year. They still look great so I am reusing them again.

Many of the evergreens that I used for this were broken branches that needed to be cleaned up. This seemed like a great reason to do so! I also trimmed excessively long, or in the way, branches too.

The recent rain makes inserting these branches into the wet soil very easy and also makes it easy enough to point the stems in different directions to create a full look. At some point, hopefully very far away, the soil will freeze and add more strength to keep these winter containers in all season. I chose to start by adding my painted branches to the middle of the planter. I would love to add more, but I know that may not happen, so it will look okay with just these in the centers. Next, add the branches of the evergreen that you have the most of and place those throughout. The beauty of making your winter containers now is that the soil is pliable and will let you add branches at different angles, so even with a minimal number of branches it can look full!

Some branches, like the Colorado Blue Spruce shown below make great accents. I had a couple of containers still looking nice so I simply left the calibrachoa flowers and stuck these evergreens in around it. They will need an accent once the flowers are gone, but for now it will do. 

Overall, I think these winter containers turned out great for my first attempt. The entire project took less than an hour and I will be able to enjoy them all winter long. Want more inspiration? I love reading Deborah Silver’s posts on Dirt Simple about her projects, many of which are fabulous seasonal containers. So make the most of this time of year and collect your own pieces for beautiful winter containers this season.

The post Winter Containers appeared first on Miss Smarty Plants.

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