Decorate your windowbox with natural greens

One of our favourite things this time of year is seeing homes dressed up in their holiday finery. Whether it's lights decking roofs or just a homemade snowman, the effort never goes to waste.

If your time is limited, outdoor beauty can be as easy as a no-pressure window box display. Here, a crisp arrangement of bright foliage with hits of scarlet complements the red brick of a century-old row house.

Playing with scale and shades of green, the homeowner used a mix of everything from vibrant cedar to silvery seeded eucalyptus to dark pine boughs for a look that makes the most of the festive season. Showy branches of ilex berries inserted among the green make the scene pop with colour, while the tiny young cones on the cedar, with their yellowish hue, help create fullness and contrast. Curly willow adds varied height and texture in a contrasting brown note.

The best part? These cuttings will keep both their shape and their colour throughout the winter, so the look will last all the way until spring.

Quick tip: Resist the urge to water these window box cuttings - it will only cause the stems to rot.

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