If you’re anything like me, your passion for plants knows no limits. I’m always brainstorming creative
ways to bring more greenery into my home, so why not make a statement by using beautiful plants as your
centrepiece instead of the usual floral arrangements filled with wasteful and toxic floral foam? It’s a
refreshing and no-waste twist and the perfect excuse to add some new green friends to your collection.
Here’s how I made my planter. Use these steps to inspire you to make your own with what you already have at home.
- First, I gathered an assortment of natural items that I like to collect — things like cones, seed pods, shells and nuts. I also had a few small tropical peperomia plants that needed to be repotted, so they were perfect to use, too. Tip: Other natural elements you can design with are clipped evergreen branches, dried flowers like hydrangeas and even fresh green artichokes that you can cook later.
- Next, I went shopping for new flowering plants (the orchids were perfect), a small houseplant that trails (English ivy) and a few plants with interesting foliage (I went with maidenhair fern and Echeveria).
Tip: Other favourite foliage plants for arrangements include pothos with variegated leaves, baby’s tears and all types of small ferns. - When it was time to decide on a container, I selected my favourite vintage wooden tray that I found at a yard sale years ago. When you have several different plants in an arrangement, a simple and natural
material for the vessel looks the best — you can even plant up the wooden crate that you get from your oranges this winter (line it with a reused plastic bag first so it doesn’t make a mess when you water it). - As I began planting, I added some potting soil to the planter and, much like I would design a small garden, I started with the tallest plants in the middle (the flowering jasmine and the bright green tropical cypress) and built layers of textures and different leaf shapes around the outside. When I was happy with the architecture and scale of the main plants, I added the colourful orchids and then tucked in the lacy maidenhair ferns.
- Finally, I filled the remaining space with the glossy peperomia and the new rose-pink Echeveria, then added some fresh (soaked first) sheet moss to the bottom to cover up any exposed soil. When this was done, I set a bunch of cones and nuts in different shapes and sizes on top of the moss, and I even stuck in a favourite lotus pod that I’ve reused in many different arrangements.
- For the finishing touch, I clipped some bare branches from my dormant shrubs and poked them into the soil. It added an even more forest-like feel to the naturescape I was trying to create.
Care: To care for your living arrangement, keep it watered and in a bright spot. My centrepieces usually look great for up to six weeks, and then I like to take them apart and repot them into their own pots until I’m ready to use them in another grand display. All the beauty. None of the waste!
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Jennifer Reynolds, our previous Editor-in-Chief, is a long-time authority in gardening, do-it-yourself projects, urban sustainability, parenting, placemaking and community matters. Her features and columns have been published in Canadian Living, Canadian Family, Gardening Life, House & Home, Globe & Mail, National Post, Toronto Star & more. Plus, her designs and expertise have been featured on dozens of HGTV, W Network and CTV shows.
