Hi GPOD! Today we’re returning to New Jersey to see more from Ellen Goldfarb and Tracy Buttrick. After sharing their beautiful fall containers with us, Ellen is back with some winter inspiration using colorful branches, evergreens, berries, pinecones, and more.
This beautiful antique lead planter in Ridgewood, New Jersey, always calls for a generous amount of greenery and nice height. We try to change what we do from year to year. This time we used curly willow, artificial white berry picks, magnolia leaves, red winterberry (Ilex verticillata, Zones 3–9), and frosted pinecones. Silver bell eucalyptus, silver brunia stems, noble fir (Abies procera, Zones 5–6), and incense cedar (Calocedrus decurrens, Zones 5–8) fill out the arrangement.
This is the same antique planter and house as in the previous photo, but from another winter. That year we used a combination of yellow twig dogwood (Cornus sericea ‘Flaviramea’, Zones 3–7) and red twig dogwood (Cornus sericea cvs., Zones 2–7) for lots of winter color. We also used artificial berry picks in pink and white and natural brown pine cones.
We like to use real berries, but sometimes the birds eat them before the season ends. Artificial berries give the client guaranteed color for longer. For greenery, we used desert juniper (Juniperus osteosperma, Zones 3–9), balsam fir (Abies balsamea, Zones 3–6), and incense cedar.
This slim planter sits on a small sliver of a step at an entry in Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey. It is simple but one of my favorites, with stunning red twig dogwood stems. We buy these from a farm that also grows and sells the more common darker-red stems.
Beneath the red is a froth of desert juniper. Dried lotus pods (Nelumbo cvs., Zones 4–10) and clusters of silver brunia punctuate the greenery. The finishing touch is a frilly skirt of bright chartreuse incense cedar.
This one sounds like an outfit, doesn’t it?
One of a pair of pots on the front porch of a Mission-style house in Teaneck, New Jersey, these had plenty of space for tall branches. We liked the combination of golden curly willow (Salix matsudana ‘Tortuosa’, Zones 4–8) and redtwig dogwood against the creamy tan stucco.
We tucked in shiny magnolia leaves with taller silver bell eucalyptus, then added natural brown pinecones and small clumps of silver brunia. A generous, draping swath of incense cedar finishes the bottom of the arrangement.
This is a window box in Englewood, New Jersey. A classic house calls for a classic planting. We used red winterberries, magnolia leaves, frosted pinecones, and silver brunia clusters. Some noble fir and our favorite evergreen, incense cedar, finish the arrangement.
This is a close-up detail of a planter in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey. Dark red twig dogwood stems are mixed with curly willow and branches of multiflora rose hips. We love using the rose hips, but they are sometimes hard to find.
This pot also had artificial white berry picks and Eastern white pine (Pinus strobus, Zones 3–8). Silver brunia on longer stems, noble fir, and incense cedar complete the arrangement.
Thank you for sharing more of your beautiful container designs with us, Ellen and Tracy! I love seeing how many different looks can come from a relatively small palette of winter materials. Changing the color and shape of the branches, berries, cones, and evergreens gives each container its own personality.
We have even more of Ellen and Tracy’s winter containers to share, so we’ll be back tomorrow with another round of inspiration!
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