If you need some pizzazz for your outside entrance to greet visitors, create a live green arrangement with evergreens and twigs cut from your property. Jazz it up with something sparkly and you can leave it in place for weeks.

Once I empty my large pots and window boxes at the end of November, I can dress them up again with greenery which will last most of the winter. I keep the soil in them as that is the glue which will hold my greens in place.

Base

Here I used a waterproof fiber pot filled with oasis, but a time saver is to use one of your containers filled with soil. Once I finish arranging in a fiber pot, I place the whole thing into an empty container.

Wreaths

A trick that I have used for a long time which will get you started in a hurry, is to buy a pre-made wreath of fresh greens and build upon that as a base.

Placing this wreath on top of the rim of the pot will hide most of the soil and you can stick your greens in and around it. Buy a ready-made or make your own.

Start by placing your wreath horizontally on top and start adding your other plant materials. Once you insert stems through the wreath, that will anchor it to the container. For this container, I  began with adding gold tipped Arborvitae. Stick the branches through the wreath into the oasis or soil.

Insert Magnolia branches into the oasis along with yellow twig dogwood for drama.

Add some red dyed seeded Eucalyptus for a pop of color.

I finished it off with large branches of peach winterberry and glittery pine cones.

Tips on Creating Outdoor Christmas Arrangements with Greens

1. Use a winter hardy pot – fiber glass, metal, cement – not  terracotta as it can crack
2. Add water to soil or use oasis so that it is moist – it will freeze the arrangement in place as the weather turns cold
3. Fill up and mound soil 3-4″ above rim to give branches height and depth
4. Spray Wilt-Pruf, an anti-dessicant that will keep the greens fresh, but be careful of some firs and juniper berries- they could lose their color with the application of the spray
5. Create outside in place as the urn will become very heavy to move. Once in position, the arrangement should freeze in place
6. Don’t use styrofoam berries-only naturals- styrofoam splits
7. Use completed wreaths of greens as bases for urns
8. For center height and drama, use curly willow, dogwood      branches, birch logs, or winter berry branches
9. Since most arrangements will be viewed from a distance, the bolder and larger, the better
10. Add large outdoor balls or other accents (glitter branches) for added drama