Making a Christmas wreath from materials grown in your own garden is an enjoyable and rewarding activity, providing a creative time-out to slow down amongst the madness of the festive season. It also provides a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly solution to decorating your home for Christmastime.

As well as foraging in your garden, you may also enjoy going for a walk in local wooded areas, where you will find a wealth of natural materials such as leaves, pinecones, twigs, and berries. 

Don’t forget the forager’s code:

• Know what you are picking
• Only pick from abundant patches
• Only pick one in twenty seedbeds
• Do not pick on nature reserves
• Minimise damage

Cutting Foliage

When cutting evergreens from your garden, remember to follow the basics of pruning to maintain the overall health of the plant. Remove branches from trees and shrubs as if you were thinning the structure to help to maintain the overall shape.

Preserving Your Wreath

An important point to consider when making a homegrown wreath is that it will require some element of maintenance to keep it looking, and smelling fresh. Wreaths only tend to last several weeks when kept indoors due to the drying effects of indoor heat, so it is better to hang your wreath outdoors where it can last for up to five weeks. 

Using moss as a base on your wreath will help keep the stems of the foliage as fresh as possible, and you can also preserve the quality of your wreath by lightly misting it with water every day or so to kept hydrated.

Foliage Choices

Holly

Perhaps the most symbolic plant of the festive season, holly is known for its glossy green, spiky leaves and bright red berries. Holly is well-loved among wildlife as it provides shelter for birds and hedgehogs, and is a source of food for caterpillars. 

Holly is a great choice for ensuring a long-lasting wreath as the leaves are waxy in texture, meaning they will not dry out too quickly. Remember when handling holly, to wear a thick pair of gloves to avoid getting scratched.

Rosemary

An evergreen herb native to the Mediterranean, rosemary is a low-maintenance choice for the garden, and carries a pine-like aroma that can add an extra festive touch to your wreath. For best results, wash rosemary sprigs and hang in a well-ventilated space to air-dry for a day or two to preserve them for longer.

Viburnum

One of the few plants that bloom during winter, Viburnum is hardy and virtually maintenance-free. The shrub produces fragrant red flowers that turn to shades of blushed pink and white, followed by berries, making it an excellent choice for using as part of a vibrant, eye-catching wreath.

Other Foliage Choices for Wreath-making

Conifer
Yew
Ivy
Eucalyptus
Laurel
Sarcococca
Choysia
Photinia x fraseri ‘Red Robin’
Pieris
Skimmia japonica
Pittiosporum
Magnolia
Mahonia japonica
Nandina domestica, Heavenly bamboo
Winter-flowering Heather
Asparagus Fern

Branches with colourful berries, like cotoneaster, beautyberry, mistletoe, hypericum, and snowberry, bring a real festive pop to wreaths.

Or go for a more rustic look by adding in dried seed head of echinacea, crocosmia, dried grasses fruits.

Make Pine Cones a Festive Red

Add 30ml (1oz) of red food colouring to 4 litres (7 pints) of water and soak pine cones over night. Allow to air dry on a paper towel until completely dry for beautiful red cones to add to your home-made wreath.