Scavenging for the season

Dusty miller (Senecio cineraria) is just one of the plants that could be growing in your garden ready to perk up your Christmas decorations. Although this plant is classified as an annual, in most parts of the province it lasts through the winter. If you just prune off the top parts and leave the base, it should start producing new growth next spring.

Combine sprigs with pink, purple or blue ribbon and silk flowers in a wreath, in floral arrangements or as tiny package decorations.

If you’re lucky enough to have holly planted on your property don’t hesitate to prune cuttings for decorating purposes. The larger the bush is, the more you can cut, however I wouldn’t remove more than a quarter of the branches. Pruning these shrubs helps to make them more dense and compact.

If you take a drive in the country this time of year you may find wild holly or winterberry (Ilex verticillata). Although it’s lacking the attractive shiny green leaves of its cousin, it has far more berries clinging to its deciduous branches.... that is, before the robins find them.

Ivy is another great source of greenery. It can liven up centrepieces and if you push the snipped end into a moist base it will likely form roots. You can pot it after the holidays and move the new plant back outside next spring.

I love the bare branches of that nasty Japanese Knotweed in late fall as well.

Although this weed is the very devil to get off your property once it becomes established, the stems are artfully shaped and would look good spray-painted gold in a large urn.

Don’t bypass the herb garden in your walkabout for seasonal decorations. Rosemary and thyme add wonderful scents to your creations. Parsley stays a vibrant, fresh green throughout the winter. Hercules is supposed to have woven garlands from it and remember Beatrix Potter’s tale of Peter Rabbit? "First he ate some lettuce and some broad beans, then some radishes, and then, feeling rather sick, he went to look for some parsley."

It might be a good idea to have some of this natural tummy cure on hand considering the overindulgent times coming up.