What plants could I put in a small pot to look good at Christmas (outdoors)?
Answers:
1). Solanum (the plant with large orange berries) is reasonably hardy and can be used in winter planted containers.
2). Hardy cyclamen - very good for winter pots. Cyclamen hederifolium or C. neapolitanum.
3). Helleborus niger - the Christmas rose - you could try it and hope it flowers for Christmas. (May not 'til Spring though!)
4). A small conifer, for height - try bright lime-green Cupressus Goldcrest - which can be clipped (as in topiary) - and can be planted out in the garden later. Can eventually - if allowed grow into a tree several metres high.
5). Skimmia japonica subsp. reevesiana - has wonderful red berries of good quality at about that time of year. (It won't be the cheapest on my list though!)
6). If you really want cheap & cheerful (& don't dare tell any of my friends I said this) - Winter Pansies.
There are many other things - but hope this helps.
Don't forget to water - even in winter. Containers still dry out a lot in winter.
(Incidentally - Holly, although a "Christmas" plant - is a SHRUB; it grows relatively slowly and is not really suitable for a "small pot".)
The nicest (and most traditional) outdoor plants at Christmas time are Holly plants with red berries on them. Home Depot sells cute little young ones with berries on them around Christmas time. You could always put small evergreen trees such as Blue Spruce in pots. There are also winter flowering plants called winter roses. They actually bloom flowers in the freezing cold of winter.
First answer is a good one if you're in a colder Zone.What Zone are you in? My sis in law lives in Texas and she can get by with planting poinsettia in outdoor pots. She uses larger pots and buys 3 or 4 (small, inexpensive) colors for each pot, It rarely freezes in her area until Jan. or Feb. A friend in Oklahoma always plants a few pots in fall with those ornamental cabbage & Kale plants. She uses a mix of colors and varieties and puts a pot on each side of her garage. They are very beautiful and will last for months into the freezing temps. She usually dumps her out when it's time for pansy's in the spring.
The Holly and the Ivy...ivy will grow anywhere, no matter how warm or cold, and looks lovely and lush when it trails over the pot.
Holly with bright red berries would be good.
But my favourites to plant at Christmas time are Cyclamen, the ones with the red flowers would look very Christmassy, or you could mix red and white. They are hardy and can bloom for months, then come out again next year! Very pretty, graceful flowers.
The Chilean Potato plant has bright orange berries in Winter - then dainty white flowers all summer, so that is very good value.
Or you could plant mini conifers, like baby Christmas trees and decorate them, either with dainty fairy lights or little fir cones.
Have fun!
I like to cut some bare branches ( good straight ones ) and I give them a quick spray painting with white, silver and gold ( seperate branches of each color ) . I then put some dirt in the pots , and stick the branches into the soil. I then add a few evergreen branches ( such as pine, or cedar ) for contrasting color, keeping the greens shorter and to the front of the pot . We also have a plant here called Winterberry, that has bright red berries; I cut a few of these also , and add them to the mix.. Also, I 've cut a few Rhododendron branches
and tucked them in the pot . I like this arrangement , because the plants loo good, and need no care . Come spring, you just toss them out .. You can experiment with different branches , colors , etc. to get a look that you like . I cut all my stuff along the roadside here, costing me nothing .
a chritsmas rose or lillys but dont let the frost get at them
Holly
Winter pansies are bright and cheerful all through the winter and don't need much looking after! Fine in ice and snow too!
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