During the spring, summer, and fall my windowboxes are filled with beautiful blooming and foliage plants, but once frost hits, I pull all those plants out and my windowboxes are left bare. Very dull and boring. To make these windowboxes usable year-round, I add some winter interest to the boxes using evergreens.
The process is quite simple because I can utilize the leftover soil in the containers as a means for holding my evergreens in place. Simply cut your evergreens to size and insert the bare stems into the soil at different angles. Some should point vertically, some horizontally, and some hanging over the edge of the container. Learn more about harvesting evergreens in a previous blog post: Seasonal Decorating with Evergreens
1. I started with a base of 2 different spruce evergreens because they were very full and filled the space quickly. This could be other species like fir, arborvitae or others as well.
2. Next I filled in the remaining space with white pine. White pine branches aren't as full as other species, so I like to use it last as the filler.
3. Then I added some color accent by using some leftover Magnolia branches from another project. The brown added a nice contrast with the rest of the green foliages.
4. Finish it off my adding some other accessories. I added plastic ornaments attached to wires, but this could be pinecones, ribbon, birch branches, or other decorative accents. The possibilities are endless!
These evergreens will stay looking good throughout the winter months and can be easily removed when its time to replace the soil and get those spring flowering plants added back in.
They look even better after the first snow!
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