Well it is that time of year again, frosted leaves have been blown off the trees, shrubs and climbers to reveal grey, white, black, spotted, red or orange twigs… I do love winter twigs and have planted a lot of different varieties in my garden, and why not… since our winters can feel very long sometimes!
I feel that the subtleties of nature’s offerings get rather overshadowed by the tinsel in the shops at this time of year and that is why I offer workshops for natural Christmas decorations in December (next workshop on 14th December, see workshop page). And it goes without saying that I am always particularly pleased when my enthusiasm rubs off onto others hence the posting of the letter I recently received!
Good winter twigs you can grow in your garden for Christmas decorations include:
All willow varieties if you cut them to ground level every March (e.g. Salix alba britzensis)
All dogwood varieties if you cut them to ground level every March (e.g. Cornus alba ‘Elegantissima’)
Silver birch (Betula pendula) twigs
Old man’s beard vines (Clematis vitalba)
Ash young shoots : grey in colour with black buds (Fraxinus excelsior)