Exclusions are only gift cards, custom orders and workshops – all other Christmas and regular inventory is on sale! Don’t miss this sale!

White pine is blue-green in colour and is fluffy and fresh used as an accent branch in fresh flower arrangements. Re-cut the end of each branch prior to submerging in to fresh water in the vase and add lovely seasonal cut flowers like amaryllis, roses, red and white candy-cane speckled carnations, freesia, sunny-faced gerbera daisies or any flower that you wish. Poinsettias can also be used as an unusual cut flower. Cut the colourful bracts (“blooms”) and be sure to dab the milky white sap that secretes with a paper towel and then quickly sear the end of the stem under a candle or match until it is sealed. Put the Poinsettia bloom into luke-warm water and it will remain fresh for about ten days. If it wilts in the water in the first hour, re-cut the end and try re-sealing it again.

When using evergreens in fresh flower arrangements, cut the pine branches at various lengths to provide various levels of height with some branches flirting with the blooms at the top of the vase and others dancing over the sides of the vase. Small pieces of pine can also float in wide-mouthed bowls of water that also have ruby coloured floating cranberries (yes, regular fresh cranberries from the grocer float) and lovely floating candles. This simple, shimmering bowl makes a lovely, simple and safe table centerpiece.

Collections of evergreens can be added to plastic water vials (the kind one would get at the base of a single rose from a florist) and tucked into real or artificial garland along a mantle, around a door frame or down a banister. Holly, small fresh flowers and mistletoe can also be added into these arrangements in this fashion.

Small pieces of pine can be paired with cedar, spruce or balsam, tied with a ribbon and placed behind picture frames, curled around candle stick stems, at each place setting, tied to goodie gift bags or perched on present tops. This is best done a few days prior to an event or social gathering to ensure optimal freshness.

Adding evergreen branches to potted plants adds pizzazz and originality to standard seasonal plants. British Columbian Cedar (also known as Western Cedar), Boxwood and White Pine are the best evergreens to use for this project. When firmly placed in the soil of the potted plant these evergreens should not dry out (the moisture from the soil will keep them hydrated), but if they did become dry from being placed in the plant too early (best to do a few weeks or less prior to an event), BC Cedar, Boxwood and White Pine do not show their dryness. They may appear dry to the touch, but will not look dry and unappealing.

Enjoy seasonal decorating with fresh evergreens and lovely fresh and potted flowers!

The process is relatively simple when some of our tips and tricks are observed. All containers require a base for the boughs to push in to.
This keeps the boughs firm in the pot. The best base you can use is your soil and the roots from your summer/fall planting. When the frost
takes your arrangements of mums and kale (if you used icicle pansies, be sure to remove them and plant them in a little clump where you can enjoy their sunny faces in early March, water well until freeze-up) cut off the bodies of the mums and kale at the soil level. This will leave you a firm, resistant base to push your boughs in to. If you have all ready emptied your pots or have a new pot, use will need to create a base using a somewhat heavy soil (fresh potting soil is too loose and is like working in “soup”) from your garden or a combination of dry floral foam or Styrofoam and sand. Play Sand or Traction Sand can be purchased at any home centre at this time of year. Do not use only foam as it creates a container that is too light and will be damaged in the strong winter winds.

Once your base has been established, a selection of evergreen boughs is required. If you have access, use your own or ones cut from a walk in the woods. Be sure to gain permission if the property is not your own. Cut long boughs and cut responsibly, taking only what you will need for your projects. Cedar needs to be cut prior to mid November when it turns a brown colour and is unattractive. Cut boughs can be stored outdoors in a shaded area until you are ready to use them. A good garden centre will also have bundles of local boughs for you to purchase if you do not fancy harvesting your own.

Evergreen boughs must be cut into smaller pieces to be used in arrangements. Be sure the boughs you use are size proportioned to your pot. For example, a hanging basket of boughs should be similar in size to your summer planting, tight to the pot, not large and floppy. This will require you to cut the branches at logical places along the main branch to create small boughs. When cutting your boughs, cut the ends on an angle so you have a little knife point to press into the base. Insert each bough firmly into the base, approximately one inch. Boughs pushed in firmly will better handle the winter winds, freezing rain and heavy or drifting snow.

A mixture of evergreens will create a lovely arrangement. Consider using at least two different kinds of local greens, blended together throughout the arrangement: red pine, white pine, Ontario cedar, balsam, blue spruce, hemlock etc. Specialty boughs, purchased from a good garden centre, can accent the local greens: British Columbian cedar, silver fir, incense cedar, Carolina sapphire, leyland cypress, magnolia etc. Specialty boughs should be added after the arrangement has taken shape with the local mixed greens and be used only as accents. Other accents to use include red dogwood and curly willow (for height), decorative sticks, Ilex berries (Canadian Holly, found in swampy areas), rosehips, pine cones, sumac, weather resistant sparkly branches and decorative birds. Firm, interesting looking natural accents (milk pods, iris pods, cone flower heads etc) can be spray painted to add some pop and colour to your arrangements. Your own creativity is the only limit in your Winter-scaping project!

By Thanksgiving you should have all of your dividing, transplanting and new planting completed. It is best to have this done in September, but use Thanksgiving as the latest you should make adjustments to plant material. By getting the plants happily in the ground and watered with a good transplant fertilizer, you are allowing them to establish a healthy root base prior to the ground freezing solidly, which usually happens at sometime in November or early December. It is this well established root base that helps the plants over winter, especially during winters where a lot of freezing and thawing occurs.

Also by Thanksgiving daffodils need to be planted. Since they usually bloom first in the spring, they need to be planted first. Tulips can be planted at any time as long as you can dig the ground. I recall hearing of a customer who planted tulips on Christmas Day one year. The later you wait to plant tulips and crocus, both of which squirrels love, the less apt you are to loose them to the mischievous squirrels. Planting bulbs with dehydrated hen manure (a product called Acti-Sol) or blood meal is another way to decrease the uprooting of them by the neighborhood critters. The need to protect our fall bulbs is real, but don’t let it discourage you from planting them. Only the sunny face of yellow daffodils or the elegance of double tulips can herald spring after a long, cold winter.

Once the frost takes the annuals, they can be removed from containers and flower beds. Colorful grasses, mums and kale can be placed in holes to create Fall interest. If you choose to take some annuals inside for the winter, be aware that you may be bringing in a pest on the host plant. Be sure to spray preventatively with an Earth Safe insecticidal soap (EndAll is a great choice). If you wish to create winter arrangements, annuals can be removed from containers (window boxes, patio pots, hanging baskets) by cutting off the foliage at the soil level and retaining the soil and roots in the container. This base can be used for adding in pine, cedar, dogwood and other accents. Since these natural materials must stick into a solid base for stability throughout the windy, cold months, the roots and old soil make an excellent and inexpensive option.

Perennials can be cut down in the Fall or Spring. Unlike from most trees and shrubs, herbaceous perennials emerge from the soil each year, with the old foliage and stalk as compost. They come back fresh and new each year. The benefit of leaving your perennials as they are all winter is that the old foliage creates a protective covering over the heart of the plant throughout the winter. Also, many seed heads are excellent food for the birds. But, if a clean landscape is your desire and/or you are short on time in the muddy spring, the Fall is an acceptable time to cut back the perennials in your garden to six to eight inches in height. For tender perennials such as Heather, Rose-of-Sharon and Perennial Hibiscus, be sure to provide extra covering in the form of mulch around the heart of each plant.