It’s that time of year when homes sparkle with twinkling lights and holiday garden art turns ordinary lawns into magical spectacles. This year, when planning your outdoor Christmas decorations, why not incorporate your planters in new ways? Here are ten ideas from Hooks and Lattice to include idle planters in this year’s Christmas decorating scheme:
- Many garden stores sell small evergreen, rosemary, or ivy Christmas trees. Purchase small topiaries or trees to fit in your window boxes. Display them in pairs or alone for dramatic impact. Insert them into the boxes still in their pots, allowing for easy removal after the holidays.
- Arrange large glass ornaments and light bulbs in neat piles in window boxes. Wind strands of miniature white or colored lights through the stack. The balls will reflect the lights and add an extra sparkle to your planters.
- Cover small boxes with shiny cellophane wrap and top with pretty bows. Stack gift boxes in window boxes for a cheerful display. Add miniature lights if you like.
- Hang storage on the outside of each window box. Put evergreens in the box and adorn with miniature lights.
- Buy inexpensive decorative nutcrackers and place them in window boxes. Put them on top of small boxes placed inside windows so they appear completely visible from the street.
- For a traditional look, fill the boxes with pretty poinsettias and mount a large red or green bow (made of an outdoor-grade material) in the center of the box’s front panel.
- Fill the box with dwarf conifers or small shrubs like skimmia or euonymous. Make a garland out of old mittens and place one in the front of each planter.
- Fill the planters with large pineapples. Kids can decorate the cones with a roll of white glue and then a bunch of shimmery glitter. Add miniature lights for extra sparkle.
- Fill the planters with homemade bird treats. Combine suet and peanut butter with cornmeal and roll into balls or form a star or tree. Top with seeds, nuts, and cereal. Create a garland of pretzels, peanuts, and cereal tied to raffia. The birds will eat the good stuff and use the raffia in the spring to build their nests.
- For a whimsical touch, glue old toys to a foam cone and create a toy tree. Put a tree in each window. Wrap miniature lights around the trees, if you like.
