We know seasons have definitely changed when the ground is cluttered with nuts. Those pesky acorns are everywhere—they clatter on the roof, bonk us when we walk under a tree. This year instead of raking them up and tossing them aside, maybe try something creative with them. Make a nut wreath.
Making a wreath can be a personal day project, or maybe something to involve the kids. The wreath can be decorated with red bows to bring in the Christmas season.
Here’s how:
• Start by choosing a wreath frame. Hobby shops sell many kinds, varying size and material from which they are made. The form could be made of wire, grapevine, straw or foam. Whichever kind and size of form is chosen, keep in mind that the form should be completely covered with no form showing.
• Many wreaths are wrapped in burlap. The burlap conceals the frame, and for starters it might be easier to affix the nuts to the material rather than the form itself.
• Gather the nuts. Nuts of chestnut, walnut, filbert and pecan can be purchased now in the grocers, but there are loads to be collected from the wild, if not from your own property. Oaks are dropping their acorns now. Each oak has a distinctive acorn—large ones from Burr oaks, football shaped from live oaks, smaller ones from Chinkapin and red oaks. Try to collect the nuts with their caps intact for a bit more fun.
• Pine cones add a flair to a nut wreath. The cones may be large from pine trees such as Eldarica, or smaller piñion cones and cones from the many cedars are distinctive. There are barrel-shaped cones from Atlas Blue cedar and smaller cones from Deodar.
• Seed pods and berries from junipers, nandinas, beauty bush, or small berries from other bushes can be added. Options are as many as your creativity takes you.
• Plan on using about one pound of unshelled nuts.
• If hanging the wreath, attach a wire loop to the back of the frame before affixing the nuts.
• Glue nuts onto the frame, using ample amount of glue. Start with the largest pine cones or nuts, then group smaller nuts around the larger nuts and cones. Most instructions suggest using a glue gun for affixing the materials to the frame. Glue guns do work but are not long lasting. There is a black tar-like gel that many times is longer lasting than the glue.
• Fill in gaps between the nuts with greens from cedars, junipers, or pines – greens that will last the season.
• Add a festive bow and let it dry without moving it until glue is firmly set.
• Enjoy!
Ellen Peffley Harp, a retired professor of horticulture at Texas Tech University, writes about gardening for several Texas newspapers.
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