World Of Christmas
Here are some tips on Christmas decoration and how to keep your poinsettias and evergreens fresh all throughout the holiday season.

Ten Tips for Christmas Decorations

The classic top 10 tips to make your Christmas decorations stand out are:

Pretty Poinsettias: Purchase your poinsettias in the bud stage and let them bloom after they had been put on display so that they keep looking fresh and last longer.

2) Flower Fertilizer: To keep the flowers fresh throughout the Christmas holidays, use a solution of 20-20-20 fertilizer or Miracle Grow for the initial watering in your newly-bought poinsettia plant. Water your plants every three days to keep them from drooping before the holiday ends.

3) Safe from Weather: Keep your indoor and outdoor Christmas decorations and seasonal plants safe from weather by setting them away from drafts and heat vents.

4) Gifts of Nature: Have a good look at your surroundings and see what beauty Nature has gifted us with. You can use them as part of your Christmas decorations. Some of the things that you might use are wild persimmon branches, tobacco leaves, golden rain tree pods, cotton stars, okra, pinecones and cedar berries that can be used creatively in unique arrangements with their beauty enhanced by using decorative items such as colorful balls, tassels, paper cuttings and silver ribbons.

5) Preserving Greens: To store green plants and flowers until they are used in Christmas decoration, keep them in a cool dry place and spray them with an anti-desiccant (available at garden centers) generously to prevent moisture from escaping.

6) Ever Green Evergreens: Soak your evergreens in a bucket of water before making garlands or wreaths to re-hydrate them and to remove dirt and soil from them.

7) Christmas Centerpieces: Be creative and make a memorable holiday centerpiece by putting citrus fruits such as oranges, lemons, limes and kumquats in a bowl and topping them up with a pineapple. You may also keep a bowl of red apples as a centerpiece.

8) Pamper the Nose: Christmas smells and scents such as that of a crackling fire, the fresh greens and cookies baking in the oven tantalize us with warmth and festive spirit. Greet your guests with aroma of cinnamon sticks and cloves simmering in hot water in a saucepan.

9) Fragrant Beauty: Pots of paperwhites or paperwhite bulbs included in Christmas decorations not only look beautiful but are fragrant too. They are easily available at nurseries and garden centers.

10) Gingerbread House: One of the classic and most popular Christmas decorations, Gingerbread houses are beautiful to look at and tasty to eat. So don't forget to make some for this Christmas.