Make your own Christmas wreath to get you into the festive spirit and use many materials from the garden.
Step-by-step guide to making a traditional holly wreath
Assemble
the materials: one wire ring*, one bag of sphagnum moss*
(moss from the lawn usually works equally well), plenty
of holly with or without berries and cut into 12-15cm sections,
reel of 0.56mm annealed wire*, secateurs, and a bow to decorate.
- Tease out moss and lay a fist-sized bundle on top of the wreath ring.
- Fasten one end of reel wire to the ring and start to wrap the wire around the moss in a circular fashion. Keep the wire taut. Continue working the wire round the ring adding more moss bundles until completely covered.
- Lay the prepared holly on the top of the moss, adding one piece at a time and securing each with a single wrap of wire. Overlap the holly to ensure no moss is visible. Work round the ring until covered with holly.
Tie
off the reel wire with a few extra wraps around the wreath,
then draw a longer piece of wire up to form a loop to hang
the wreath. Finish off with a bow at the top. - Hang outside and keep the moss moist. It should last several weeks.
Alternative wreaths
Pine
wreath with cones - wire short sections of pine branches
onto a pre-formed twig ring. Take an open pinecone and twist
a 10cm length of stiff florist wire around the base. Push
the cone, wire-end down, on to the pine ring and bend over
the wire at the back to secure. Cones look good clustered
in threes. Spray with fake snow for winter effect.
Old man's beard (Clematis vitalba ) 'tinsel' wreath - the fluffy seedheads of this hedgerow Clematis make great natural tinsel. Cut short sections and push into a twig ring. A blast of hairspray can help prevent the seedheads breaking up. Best as an indoor wreath.
Coloured
winter stem wreath - willows and dogwoods grown for
their winter stems make great alternative wreath material.
No base is needed. Simply collect 12-15 young, flexible stems.
Take one long stem and bend it into a circle about 30-40cm
in diameter, twisting in the overlaps until it holds the circular
shape. Then add in the next stem, starting from the thicker
end and twist it in and out of the circle. Continue with the
remaining stems making sure that each stem starts slightly
further along from the last. Add a wire hoop and hang.
* available from florists' supplies