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What a wonderful time of the year to be outside! Of
course the vegetable, herb and flower gardens have most likely been
put to bed for the winter. Some gardeners clean out their beds and cover the plants
tenderly for cold weather, others let nature blow a cover of leaves
over the crisp brown remnants of previously green boughs. Either
way, now is the time to leave the yard and; go "wilding." For naturalists, wilding means
collecting material that grows wild along the roadside, hedgerows and fields of the
area. Many clever entrepreneurs have made a business of collecting,
packaging and shipping these natural botanicals across the country
to florists and crafters that do not have the access to or time to
get these materials themselves. Well, what kind of "wilding" is available and
what do you do with what you have gathered?
The first rule is to make sure you are not trespassing on private property. Get permission from landowners not only to take material
but even to hike on their property.
Next rule, know that you are not looking for a plant that is endangered. Even if you are not uprooting a plant, you certainly do
not want to disturb or remove seedheads from something that we should be nurturing and
preserving. There are some societies for wildflowers and endangered plants
that can help you identify endangered species. You should be
familiar with a rule of twenties" that naturalists follow. This rule states
that, if you are not sure if you should pick something, make sure you see at
least 20 of that plant growing in the immediate area before picking any. A
final caution against picking anything that is edible along a roadside, as
counties, even in rural areas, spray along roadsides for weed control.
The materials that I go wilding are those that I use
in fall and winter floral arrangements as well as material to feed the birds during the
winter. You should have already collected some nice sunflower heads that
haven't already been picked clean of seed. Acorns, butternuts and pinecones
are fun for young children to gather. The nuts are used in crafts and
potpourri's. Pinecones that are not open can be put in a slow oven for an hour to
dry them out, then they will fan out. Keep pinecones for holiday wreaths or
to fill with peanut butter, roll in birdseed and hang on your pine trees during the
winter. A popular holiday decoration has become a large basket filled with
pinecones hiding a string of white twinkle lights. Now is the time to
collect the pinecones for that hearth basket!
Many people mix up rosehips and bittersweet. Bittersweet is collected
earlier in the fall. It is a vine that can be invasive draping across
hedgerows. It has become increasingly difficult to find because it dries
so nicely for autumn decorations. I have heard that in the past, some
communities have banned it's sale because inconsiderate people
have pulled it from others' yards. (See rule number one above.) If you
absolutely must have bittersweet, I think your florist can order you
some. Bittersweet starts out with pale yellow "berries" growing from the
vine, that then open, so that you have what looks like an orange sphere
surrounded by yellow "petals." I have often collected long vines that
can be wound into a wreath shape of bittersweet that is very attractive.
People pay top dollar for a bittersweet wreath in the fall.
Rosehips are the fruit of the rose. They look like little berries with
colors ranging from orange to maroon. Rosehips are a staple
of Christmas decorations here. I have a few cautions about picking
rosehips. Wear leather gloves. Roses have thorns! You can take the
time to strip the thorns from the stem later if you aren't picking a
bushel full. And sometimes, rosehips contain some "invisible" gnat eggs.
You will know if you brought these in with your rosehips because they
will hatch in a few weeks inside the house. Don't let this discourage
you. Some naturalists claim that by placing the sprigs of rosehips in
the freezer for several days the bugs are killed. I am not convinced of
this, after all they survive outside all winter, right? If you by
chance, notice a swarm of gnats has appeared on your rosehips, simply
place the rosehips in a garbage bag and spray them with a house and
garden spray, close the bag and leave it in the garage a few days before
retrieving your rosehips. I do not do this routinely on all rosehips
since it may not be necessary to add the pesticides. Also, spray your
rosehips with a shiny acrylic spray varnish to make them shiny and bright
and bring out the color.
Other materials suitable for wilding are all sorts of pods such as
milkweed pods and brown iris seedheads. Look for dried thistles, these
can be sprayed with floral spray in colors to match your decor.
Goldenrod has a bad rap. Most people think that goldenrod is
responsible for their hayfever, when in fact, the pollen from goldenrod is
heavy and not known for being very airborne. It happens that goldenrod
blooms during the ragweed season and has gotten the blame for the
allergies associated with ragweed that has very airborne pollen. I am
telling you this because goldenrod dries quite nicely if not picked too
late. Pick it when it first turns gold. You can touch up the color with
some gold floral spray. Fill an urn and let it dry. There are tons of
gorgeous natural materials out there that can complement every decor
from primitive country to modern. Find some baskets or an unusual
container to fill with an assortment or all one variety of "wild"
weeds!
Hope to see you at Salt Box
Gallery!
Happy autumn wilding!Marian
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