Best Way to Sweeten Your Room with Herb Rings and Wreaths

Decorative rings or wreaths can be lovely at any time of year. One of the simplest can be made by wrapping long strands of flowering hop vines into a ring. The fresh vines are very flexible (except when they are cold); secure the strands by wrapping them around each other. Hang the hop wreath on a door or wall, unadorned or accented with dried flowers such as dark red dahlias tucked between the strands.

A ring of herbs — made either of fresh, short-stemmed herbs (whatever is in season) or your favourite dried herbs — can be used as the centrepiece of a table decoration. You can place a single candle, or a group of three, in the middle, but be careful to keep the flames well away from any flammable dried foliage.

For a ring of fresh herbs, make a base from a circle of florists’ foam, or of sphagnum moss packed inside a ‘sausage’ of 1.5 cm (1/2 inch) mesh chicken wire. Set the base in a round plastic container and soak with water. Cut small branches or stems of herbs, about 15 cm (6 inches) long, and set them in the foam or moss, securing them with florists’ wire or hairpins if necessary. Set on a table and keep the foam or moss moist, taking care to protect the table from moisture when watering.

For a dried herb ring, start with a ring-shaped base of straw or moss purchased from a garden centre. You can make your own by winding pliable willow or grapevine stems around a wire hoop, or by bending heavy-gauge wire into a circle. For the background of your wreath, choose a plant that you have plenty of and that dries easily – perhaps rosemary, yarrow, or wormwood or a related Artemisia species. (Be sure to wash your hands after working with wormwood.) Cut a dozen or more stems about 15 – 20 cm (6 – 8 inches) long and tuck the cut ends into the base or weave these between stems or wires to cover the ring. (Alternatively, you can start with dried herbs for the wreath’s background.) Then use dried flowers and herbs singly or in small bunches as accent plants at intervals around the ring. It looks best to limit your colours to three or so.