Living gifts

Christmas colour
For a traditional Christmas you can’t go past a bright red Poinsettia. For something different, a shiny bromeliad in bloom (e.g. Guzmania) adds a tropical touch. Bromeliads are great in pots indoors and out. Modern gerberas bred for outdoors can be enjoyed in pots for christmas and plant out later. Similarly, hydrangeas are magnificent in pots at this time of year, offering a wide choice of irresistible flowers on compact growing plants perfect for patios and smaller gardens.

Christmas fragrance
It's flowering time for fragrant white Christmas lilies. Look out for these and other colourful potted lilies in garden centres now.

Make a terrarium
A glass vase, a large jar or repurposed fishbowl is an opportunity to create a mini plant haven. Terrariums are fun for kids and they make excellent gifts.

Start with a layer of pebbles for drainage.  Add a thin layer of damp sphagnum moss  to over the pebbles. This prevents the potting mix falling down into the pebbles, while letting the water drain through. Add potting mix and get planting. Allow space for plants to grow and spread.

Small succulents and tropical plants sold as baby houseplants are great for terrariums, including ferns, peperomia and baby ’s tears. Kitchen spoons and chopsticks are helpful planting tools.

Place the terrarium where it gets plenty of light but not direct sun. Water sparingly. If there is condensation on the glass, delay watering. If the terrarium gets crowded, prune off some leaves or take out a whole plant.

Make a Kokedama
To make a beautiful Japanese hanging string garden you will need some heavy clay soil, sphagnum moss, potting mix, string and a small plant. Succulents are great because they don ’t need much watering. Baby houseplants like the shade and are great for bathrooms.

Remove your plant from its container and wrap the roots in a layer of wet sphagnum moss. In a bucket thoroughly mix some of potting mix with equal parts clay soil. Pack the mixture around the moss covered roots shaping it into a ball. Cover the ball with a layer of sphagnum moss and wind with criss-crossing string to hold it all together. Water as needed by soaking the ball in a bowl of water, then leaving it to drain.

To make a kokedama with seeds, first make the ball then press seeds into the top half of moss. Use a mist spray bottle to keep it moist. Try creeping herbs such as thyme and small flowering plants such as alyssum or violas.

The real thing
With exquisite, almost unreal looking blooms in a range of colours and patterns, moth orchids (Phalaenopsis) are loved by all. They bely their exotic beauty with an amazingly long flowering. They are easy to care for when placed in bright indirect light. To provide the humid conditions they love, sit plants on a dish of decorative pebbles with water.