In Australia, Christmas wreaths have typically been structured around European accoutrements, but did you know it is easy to make a wreath with produce from your own garden?
Australians who want to add their own Christmas flair are embracing native flower wreaths, according to Candice Burger, a flower farmer at Bowral, in the southern highlands of NSW.
“We’ve moved a long way from the traditional European wreath, with holly and berries and pine,” Ms Burger said.
“We’re really slowly crossing a new frontier with Australian native wreaths taking shape here.”
Billy buttons are a native Australian flower. (ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss)
Ms Burger said native plants worked well in wreaths with other garden flowers.
“If you take dried hydrangeas and put yellow billy button balls with them, then add any green foliage, you know, you’ve got the green and the gold,” she said.
“Billy buttons grow beautifully in Australia, they’re native and add pops of colour. The stems are quite rigid so threading them one at a time is easier.
“Then you could add in banksia, which is red for Christmas.
“I think Australians are definitely putting their own take on the wreath and a lot of wreaths are beautiful sculptures.”
Candice Burger grows vines to harvest for wreath bases. (ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss)
Garden inspiration
The wreath base is generally a circle constructed from plaited or twisted wood, which can be branches or vines from around your home.
“Use an ornamental grapevine or even wisteria,” Ms Burger said.
“Then using jute or copper wire, bend them into any shape you want and find a dry place to hang it.”
The base holds the wreath together and makes construction easy. (ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss)
Making a wreath requires few tools but secateurs, wire, jute, a wreath base, floral ingredients and ribbon are a minimum.
“Use sharp secateurs for cutting stems, leaves and wire and have both thick and thin wire on hand to hold items in place,” Ms Burger said.
“Using twine makes your wreath compostable.”
Vines are twisted into circles and then tied off with twine. (ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss)
Tips for making a wreath
Ms Burger said you should prepare to make a big mess that you can clean up later, and to just have fun and go crazy with it.
“Prepare by stripping leaves and securing flowers as a group, cut wire lengths long enough to twist tightly at the back of the wreath,” she said.
“Wreaths can get heavy so prepare a lot of wire or twine to secure it.”
A combination of dried and fresh flowers is perfect for inserting into wreaths. (ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss)
She suggests mixing dry and fresh ingredients, bunching and overlapping it together including fresh banksias, leaves, branches, pine cones, rosemary and lavender.
“To add textured coloured elements, mix the ingredients with dry and fresh produce, which will dry on the wreath.
“We’ve also made wreaths with fresh cut paper daisies, pine and lavender, even fresh hydrangeas dry on the wreath, so you can just go into your garden and cut what’s there.”
Candice Burger starts making a wreath with bunches of flowers. (ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss)
Adding layers
Ms Burger said there were no rules while constructing your wreath.
“Let ingredients flop outside the circle, create texture by overlapping your ingredients, fill gaps and during construction hold the wreath any which way, it’s a work in progress, so don’t be shy.
“It’s easy to work with one ingredient at a time and just keep adding and layering up.
Creating a Christmas wreath is an exercise in imagination. (ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss)
“Hard petals, like a paper daisy, work well but there are flowering shrubs and trees that have interesting seed pods, and you can include those.
“If you’ve got a fruiting tree like an ornamental cherry, that’s fun to do, so is dehydrating fruit,” she said.
Tips include following the circle base and looking for spaces in the wood from behind.
Hold the stems tightly, and using the wire, wind them around the wreath.
“Don’t worry, you can keep adding to the wreath or finish quite minimally, there are no rules,” Ms Burger said.
Finishing off
Add ribbons to your wreath for pops of colour and texture. (ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss)
Ms Burger suggests waiting until you have finished to tidy up the back, add bows and ribbons and test it in place.
“Use beautiful vintage ribbon, wind that in and make it your own personality,” she said.
“Wind stems into place so they’re not sticking out, you don’t want to see them; then twist the wire to finish it off.
“Don’t secure strands and cut until you know you’ve finished,” she said.
Alternately, you don’t need to cut the wire off, you can just go around keeping the tension quite tight.
Candice Burger with a Christmas wreath she made. (ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss)
“Then hang it and step back from it, don’t be shy to move things about,” Ms Burger said.
“There’s so many things you can find in your garden, you can prep all year for it, or you can go out that day and harvest from your garden.
“You’ll be surprised by how beautiful you can make a wreath.”
Candice Burger recommends using fresh and dried flowers in Christmas wreaths. (ABC Illawarra: Sarah Moss)
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