5 Tips To Keep Natural Garlands and Holiday Greenery Fresh Longer
THE FARMHOUSE
I’m a big fan of decorating with natural greenery for the holiday season. There’s just no replacing the real thing. But unfortunately fresh garlands, live wreaths, and evergreen boughs don’t usually make it from Thanksgiving to Christmas without getting pretty crispy and wilting. In years past we’ve had pine needles littering the floor with two weeks left until Christmas. Well, we’ve wised up and learned some tricks for keeping natural greenery fresh for longer, and we’re sharing them today.
Cathy’s sweater, flower still life art, more kitchen sources
Every year I pick up fresh evergreen garlands and wreaths at Costco or our local nursery (or both this year). I’m not really particular on species, just as long as they’re evergreen, smell like the forest, and bring lots of holiday cheer. Last week on the day before Thanksgiving, Garrett braved Costco to buy a few more fresh garlands for me and we started decorating over the weekend. I’ll share more of our decor later, but for now, let’s talk about how we’re going to keep our natural greenery fresh for as long as possible.
Tips for keeping natural garlands and greenery fresh
One // store in a cool place
Homes are dry and warm in the winter, and just not that hospitable for cut greenery. So when you bring your fresh Christmas greenery home, store them outdoors or in another cool place like a basement or garage. A refrigerator works great too! The goal here is to keep your live garlands, wreaths, and holiday greens cool and out of the sun until you’re ready to hang them.
Two // Give them a bath (yes, really!)
Over the weekend, I shared a video of my garlands taking a ‘bath’ in our bathtub on Instagram and got so many questions. Yes, you really should soak natural greenery! Set fresh evergreen garlands and wreaths in a room-temperature bath for a few hours or up to 24 hours to soak up as much water and moisture as possible before hanging. If you’re making your own DIY wreaths with cedar and pine and other greenery, this step is best done before assembling. Bonus: if you're taking the DIY route and your greenery isn’t assembled yet, cut the stems at a 45 degree angle just like you would fresh flowers before dunking them in the bath. That will help them hydrate better.
Three // Placement
Hanging natural wreaths, live garlands, and fresh greenery outside in the cool (assuming you don’t live in sunny tropics) is the best, but second to that is anywhere in the house that’s out of direct sunlight and in a cooler room. Basically you want to minimize water loss so avoid positioning these near operational fireplaces, on the hood vent, near heat vents, or anywhere that’s particularly drafty (basically all the best places 🤨). Not to say you can’t place them there, but be forewarned that they will crisp up realll quick.
Cathy’s sweater, chandelier, drapes
Four // Spritz with water
Continue hydrating your fresh holiday greenery with a fine mist of water from a spray bottle. This is a no-brainer way to add moisture to your greenery and help then last longer! Of course it'll take a minute to spray those 20' long live garlands, but it's worth it. Try to mist your live greenery every couple of days. I’ll admit, I’m liable to forget this step, but I’m optimistic that I’ll remember enough to make an impact.
Let’s go for five…
Five // use a anti-wilt protector
For minimize water loss from your beautiful holiday greenery, buy an anti-wilt protector (also called an anti-desiccant spray). It will help lock in moisture and extend the life of your wreaths and garlands. Wilt Stop and wilt pruf are popular brands - I've used the latter with success and like that it meets FDA requirements for edible plants. Simply take your fresh wreaths and garlands outside or to another well-ventilated space and spray them with the anti-wilt protector (note that this step would come after soaking them in a bath and letting them dry). After the anti-desiccant spray drys, hang them up!
BTW these tips are great for live Christmas trees, too.
So if you store your live greenery outside, soak them in a bath, place them away from heat vents and fireplaces, spritz them with water, and use Wilt Stop or another anti-desiccant spray, how long will they last indoors? Well that depends on so many factors - your home, climate, how old and dry the greenery is when it arrives, etc - but in general, a couple of weeks. Maybe three. Will they last from Thanksgiving to Christmas…? I’ll keep you posted!
Have any more tips? I’d love to hear them!
