Use Discretion in Creating Plant Decorations

One of the best, and most abused, ways for a gardener to enjoy the holidays is to use plants as part of the celebration. Cut trees are often the centerpiece, along with the indoor plants, including poinsettias and holiday cactus we have written about here in recent weeks. They’re all great and serve their purpose.

Wreaths and swags containing parts of plants are also part of many families’ holiday traditions. Utilizing foliage, berries, twigs, cones, seeds and seedpods and bark, craft-minded gardeners can create some beautiful decorations.

In general, these are perfectly fine ways to use plants. As folks head out to gather materials, though, I’d like to make a few points:

1) though pruning evergreens won’t hurt the plants, you should prune correctly;

2) always ask permission to prune plants not on your own property;

3) avoid using invasive species of plants as part of your decorations, or at least dispose of them properly if you do;

4) treat nature kindly while you’re searching;

5) review the list of poisonous plants, especially if you have children or pets in and around the home.

PRUNING — Needled evergreens are among the most resilient of plants and will generally tolerate even the most callous of sheering. It’s far better for your plants, though, if you take care to prune properly with a sharp knife or other tool. Try to prune at nodes, which are points on the stems when budding or branching occurs.

Broad-leafed evergreens such as mountain laurel or rhododendron are a bit less tolerant. Keep in mind, too, that if you snip those plants this time of year, you may be removing next spring’s blossoms. It’s your plant; you’ll have to decide if it’s worth it.

PERMISSION — Taking plants, or parts of plants off other people’s property technically constitutes trespassing and, probably, theft. I have a friend at a local police department who said his station always gets a few calls about missing trees or branches during the holidays. Most people will probably allow you to collect a few evergreen tips if you ask politely and show them you know what you’re doing.

INVASIVES — One of my pet peeves is other magazines who promote wreaths made with Asiatic bittersweet. While beautiful because of its bright reddish-orange berries, bittersweet is a nasty invasive. If these seeds drop off your wreath, they can later germinate and contribute to the spread of this plant. Click here for a list of other invasive plants.

If you insist on using invasive plants, try to burn your wreaths after the holidays, or add them to garbage that’s going to an incinerator rather than a landfill.

NATURE — As I’ve learned on numerous hikes with Dr. Richard Churchill, our staff botanist, nature can be more tender than we may think. Trampling moss, peeling bark off trees or stealing birds nests from trees is just bad form. Don’t do it. You can usually find plenty of other materials for decorations.

POISONS — Though not high on the list of holiday perils, plant poisonings do show up in the news from time to time. The berries of holly, mistletoe and yew all contain compounds with varying degrees of toxicity. If you suspect a plant poisoning, call the American Association of Poison Control Centers’ national emergency hotline at 800-222-1222. You will be immediately connected to a poison center in your local area. For one of the best databases of poisonous plants, check out Cornell University’s web site.

With only a few weeks remaining until Christmas and Hanukkah, which begins on Christmas day this year, we hope you’ll consider taking advantage of our awesome holiday subscription offer. Through a special advertising promotion, we are able to offer all subscribers and gift recipients a $25 coupon toward any merchandise at Gardens Alive, one of the nation’s leading garden catalogue companies. We’re also cut the price for a one-year subscription by $5, to $19.95, and we’re donating an additional $5 to the American Red Cross hurricane relief effort. You can click here https://www.ppplants.com/order/holiday.html to take advantage.

Paul Tukey, December 5, 2005.