Gardening: Go on, craft yourself a merry little Christmas

WITH the approach of winter, the garden takes on an air of quiet. There is an absence of urgency and a more leisurely pace can be taken.

There are a few jobs to be done such as sweeping up leaves to make compost and moving outdoor pots to the house wall for extra protection. However, use this time to lead up to a well-deserved Christmas break – and experiment using your garden and all its natural wonders to create a natural, homespun Christmas for your family.

Using nature to create a natural feel is the theme for Christmas at Dobbies.

Frosted mistletoe, snowberry and hollydays collections span the spectrum of golds, whites, reds, greens – all of which are wrapped with fresh foliage, berries, leaves and flowers to help you transform your home over the festive season.

The focus is on a home-style Christmas with Dobbies’ team of experts ready to help you make it yourself, with glistening decorations such as baubles and candles which can be swathed in natural products such as twigs, moss and leaves, all available at Dobbies Garden Centres or in your own garden. Christmas shoppers will also find ready-made decorations if they haven’t the time to make their own masterpieces.

Dobbies Garden Centres come alive at Christmas with the smell of pine needles from fresh trees, holly and mistletoe, or there are artificial trees if you prefer, together with lights and decorations to make them all sparkle and glow with Christmas pride.

Dobbies buying director Katharine Poulter says: “This year, it’s all about a homemade family Christmas and the classic White Christmas is music in our ears. You can’t go far wrong if you take that as your foundation colour.”

“Of course we understand many people don’t have time in their busy lives to make it themselves, so we have an equally exquisite range of ready-made decorations to grace your home this Christmas.”

• Dobbies Garden Centre, Melville Nursery, Lasswade, 0131-663 1941. Dobbies stocks a range of freshly-cut and artificial Christmas trees, the latest decorations and lights for the home and garden as well as unique and exclusive gifts for all the family. Customers can also craft their own gift hampers with foods from Dobbies Farm Foodhall or gifts from the garden centre.