The balcony boxes and planters have long since been cleared of the blooming summer plants and are mostly empty in winter. There are also options to make the window sills and terrace lively or festive. An empty flower box can be decorated for Christmas with or without plants. There are already a variety of frost-hardy plant species that can be planted outside without additional winter protection. In addition, the winter season is heralded by many more or less Christmassy ideas. Most of the time they are Christmas trees and ornamental bushes that are magnificent and decorated with bright fairy lights. Sleighs and wonderful characters such as reindeer, dwarves and Santa Claus figures also bring us a good Christmas spirit.
Plant balcony boxes in winter – but how?
As the days get shorter and the temperatures drop, the pre-Christmas joy increases with the first snow. Unfortunately, the flowers on the window sills, which always create a good atmosphere, are missing. In winter and especiallyat Christmas timeThese are usually replaced by light accents. Another option would be to place a Christmas tree on the balcony and decorate it atmospherically. If you like a traditional and somewhat subtle Christmas decoration that is relatively easy to care for, opt for beautiful flower box arrangements with branches of fir, spruce, pine or cypress.
Which plants are suitable for this?
With a little creativity and skill you can put a wide variety of Christmas decorations between the winter greenery. Otherwise they will be sadFlower boxes and plant potsIn winter they are transformed into real eye-catchers with a Christmas atmosphere. Whether chopped branches or species planted in the substrate, they must be frost hardy. There are a number of plants that thrive outside in winter even without additional protection.
Forthe hardy plant speciesThe potting soil from the summer planting can be used, which may be improved with some new substrate. Alternatively, different plants in pots can simply be placed next to each other in a flower box. The space in between is simply filled with winter green or Christmas decorations. Even the hardy species need watering from time to time. The permeability of the plant containers should be controlled because, especially at low temperatures, waterlogging is harmful and even destructive for all plants without exception.
When selecting the plants that you want to grow outside on the windowsill, evergreen dwarf conifers are particularly suitable. These are available in different special forms: the slow-growing dwarf spruce, the slender and upright growing false cypress, the richly shaped juniper, etc. They can be wonderfully combined with other evergreen species, such as ivy. However, there are plants like the poinsettia that tolerate neighbors poorly or not at all.
In addition to the green plants, winter-flowering species and mini trees can be used. The heather species Calluna and Erika, which bloom beautifully in white, pink or red, as well as the berry bush Torfmyte (Pernettya), the snowberry (Gaultheria), the holly (Ilex) and others are perfect for this. They attract attention with their colors among the magnificent winter green and are therefore an eye-catcher on the windowsill.
AlsoWinter perennials that stay small, can be used on the winter windowsill or at Christmas time. A possible variant is the horned violet (Viola corunta). The so-called structural plants provide a special eye-catcher on the windowsill in winter. These include the silver leaf (Sencio), the weakly growing grasses such as bear fescue grass (Festuca), blue fescue grass or the purple bells (Hauchera) with their beautiful colors.
Since green dominates in them, you can add more variety through different leaf structures and nuances and make them elegant eye-catchers. If you want to put several different types of plants together in a flower box, you should choose a container of the appropriate size. Four to five plants can be grown in a medium-sized, approximately 80 cm long box. It would be nice to combine different types of plants with different heights. This makes it particularly aesthetically pleasing to place the tallest plant in the middle, for example a mini conifer, a heather on both sides and an ivy plant on each side.
Plant hardy plants with pine branches
If you want to decorate a flower box for Christmas, the hardy plant species that are already grown in the container can be supplemented with fresh branches of, for example, fir, spruce, pine or cypress. In a decorative way, you can cut the branches of different conifers and stick them into the potting soil. The long needles wonderfully complement the hardy plants in the flower box and add a Christmas touch. You can also add a few cones, Christmas balls and lights.
Create a Christmas arrangement
You can decorate a flower box for Christmas even if you don't put any plants in it, but rather arrange a beautiful Christmas arrangement in the empty flower container. This requires sufficient floral sponge and of course winter green of your choice. First, the sponge must be placed in the water for a few hours, then cut to size and inserted into the box. Then you put in the pine branches and other things. It is important to cut them again and leave them in cold water for about 12 hours.
Red berries such as rowan, holly and others that look really Christmassy go particularly well with winter green. At Christmas you can also add a few Christmas tree balls, pine cones and beautiful red bows tied on wire. Nothing can create a Christmas atmosphere better than candlelight. It is an inseparable part of the tradition, especially during Advent. For each week of Advent, one candle can be lit in front of the window. These are best placed in a glass or lantern and then in the flower box next to the winter greenery.
If you prefer to do without a real flame outside, you can opt for Christmas balcony lighting. Decorative light accents create coziness and a festive atmosphere in the outdoor area. What do you need for that? A power connection on the balcony or terrace would be ideal. If none are available, solar lamps can help. Just a few hours of sunshine a day are enough to provide you with pleasant light later in the evening. The solar lamps can simply be inserted vertically into the flower box between the winter greenery.
The fairy lights and light strips that are intended for outdoor use have a particularly Christmassy effect. Small, discreet or large and lavish, you can design the windowsill or balcony according to your individual taste. There are also small battery-operated fairy lights on the market that can be beautifully spread around a conifer or a small boxwood tree.
If it seems too complicated to decorate the box with real plants for Christmas, there is always the option of creating a Christmas decoration for the window with fir branches and other plastic elements.
