Brian Minter: Here’s how to create the most colourful and lasting winter displays

It’s a phenomenon that spreads all across our country and it has already started this year. Most cities, small towns, event centres and households are turning their summer planters into beautiful winter display pieces using green tree tips, berried branches, large cones and vibrant stems of red, coral and yellow shrub dogwoods.

Collectively, they are called winter porch pots or winter baskets and they add wonderful value to our cities, neighbourhoods, and homes. At this time of year they stand up in our cooler temperatures but, to keep them looking great well into January, here are a few tips.

It all begins with soil that holds lots of moisture from winter rains and snow. If reusing your summer hanging baskets and planters, don’t remove the soil and roots. It is an ideal base to hold your winter stems. If we get our expected warmer and drier El Niño weather, you might need to spritz with a garden hose to keep the soil moist and the greens hydrated.

The type of greens you use, especially in drier areas, is important as well. The most popular greens are cedar, because of its semi-trailing habit and ready availability. It’s also the best filler in containers and baskets, efficiently covering up bare spots between other branches and spilling over the sides of the pots. Cedar does need to be kept hydrated regularly, however, to keep it fresh looking over longer periods.

True fir, or abies, branches are by far the most resilient, with the most popular variety being  Noble Fir. It often has a touch of blue, adding richness in colouring, and the branches themselves are very symmetrical and even, making them ideal for so many décor items like wreaths and swags.

Balsam fir, abies balsamea, with its pleasant woodsy fragrance, is also a prized evergreen because of its dark green needles with the silver underside.

There are many other true fir varieties like Noble, Grand, Korean and lasiocarpa with unique colour patterns which stand up well in both severe cold and in dry, windy situations.

Pine branches also make a nice addition to porch pots. The most popular is the soft-needled white pine, or pinus strobus. Not only does it have a soft trailing habit, it too carries a touch of blue. Of all the greens it is the most perfumed and always adds an elegant touch to both baskets and pots.

Juniper stems are becoming increasingly popular for their spiky appearance and range of colours from gold, blue, green and even purple tones of winter colouring on some varieties.

Gold foliage certainly brightens up your pots this darker time of year and one of the best and hardiest cedar varieties is thuja Gold Ribbon with quite intense yellow colouring. It tends to lift the green and blues making them more visible and vibrant.

There are a couple of tree varieties that are seldom used and they take winter containers in a whole new direction. Japanese Hinoki cypress, with their slender, dark green spiralled foliage add a new element of design for a cool contemporary look. The uniqueness of these branches is so different from all the other native plants that they add a nice contrast.