Cut this
Step away from the plastic tat this Christmas, and instead make your own decorations with greenery from your garden (or someone else’s, but do ask permission). Cut allium, poppy and hydrangea seedheads and hang in bunches, run swags of dried hops up the stairs, and swathe mantelpieces with holly branches and evergreen conifers. In January, they can all go on the compost heap.
Visit this
Escape the Christmas shopping by taking a bracing walk in the winter gardens at Anglesey Abbey in Lode, Cambridgeshire. They’re aglow with colour this month, so draw inspiration for your own garden from red-stemmed dogwood to white-barked Himalayan birch. Open daily, except 24-26. December
Plant this
Potted Hellebore ‘Christmas Star’ looks good indoors, or on a doorstep or front path over the festive season; give it a second life in spring by planting it out. It will reach 25cm. Buy one for £21.99 (including p&p; supplied in a 13-14cm frost-proof terracotta pot). To order, call 0330 333 6856, quoting GU276, or go to our Readers’ offers page. For Christmas delivery, order by midday on 15 December.
