How to Hang Christmas Garlands
6 Tips for Hanging Garlands and Greenery
Use Christmas Garland to Create a Festive Front Porch
I love the look of fresh holiday greens on my front porch, and I have some great tips that will keep your greens looking fabulous all season long. Fresh outdoor Christmas garlands instantly make a home look warm, festive, and inviting. Whether you’re decorating your porch railing, front doorway, or exterior bannisters, real greenery brings unmatched fragrance and charm. But outdoor conditions—wind, cold air, sun exposure, and moisture—can make installation tricky. These six expert tips will help you hang fresh Christmas garlands securely outside and keep them looking full and beautiful all season long.
Video Tutorial
Here are some tips hanging your holiday greenery!
How do I choose Garlands?
Buy the freshest garlands you can find. Look for garlands that are a deep green, soft, supple, and fragrant. I found mine at a local garden center, and they are gorgeous!
Some types of garland hold up far better in cold or fluctuating outdoor weather.
Top choices for outdoor durability:
Cedar (especially incense cedar) – stays flexible and lush
Noble fir or silver fir – strong branches, long-lasting
Mixed evergreen garlands – resist drying and hold shape
Pine garlands – great for cold climates
Avoid eucalyptus-heavy garlands for outdoor use—it dries quickly unless used sparingly as an accent.
How Long Should Your Garlands Be?
For a good swag and draping ends, you'll want to multiply the length you need by 1 ½ or 2 – that will give you plenty of garland to work with.
Plan to Hang the Garlands in Smaller Sections
Outdoor garlands shift with wind and weather, so hanging them in shorter pieces gives you more stability:
Why this works:
Better control in windy conditions
Less sagging over time
Easier to secure evenly around curves and corners
Simpler to replace one section if it dries out faster
Once hung, you can connect sections with wire or simply nestle them together for a seamless look.
Soak Wreaths & Garlands Overnight
When you get your greens home, give them a good soak in warm water overnight. Even your wreaths! You can fill a bathtub, a sink, or a wheelbarrow with water, and then just let the greens soak.
Even outdoors, fresh greenery lasts longer when properly hydrated first.
To prep your garland:
Submerge it in cool water (bathtub, large tub, or kiddie pool) for several hours or overnight.
Let it drip dry outside before hanging.
This deep soak ensures the branches stay flexible and fresh even in cold, dry weather.
Because it was warm enough to use a hose, I was able to use my Hoselink Fertilizer Sprayer to apply Wilt Stop. It made quick work since I had a lot of greens to spray!
Apply Wilt Stop before Hanging
Wilt Stop is an anti-transpirant made from the sap of pine trees. It is very sicky when applied, but it dries clear and isn’t sticky after application. It works by closing the stomata in the needles and leaves of foliage which prevents water loss.
You can apply it in one of two ways:
Mix it wih water according to the directions in a spray botle and spray your garlands until they are dripping wet. Allow to dry.
Mix it with water in a large tub or trug and dunk your greens into the solution until they are fully drenched. Then dry in the sun.
Either way, Wilt Stop will help keep your greens fresher for longer! I use it on wreaths and garlands and anywhere else that I am using fresh foliage outside.
Use Solid Hardware for Hanging
I like to use cup hooks for hanging garlands and wreaths. They hold everything very well on windy days here in Colorado!
Just be sure to drill a small pilot hole which makes putting the cup hook in super easy. Then you can take them out and reuse the holes again the next year!
Outdoor garlands can be heavy—especially when wet or exposed to snow. Choose hardware designed for exterior use:
Outdoor-rated command hooks (for smooth siding or trim)
Cup hooks or screw-in hooks (for porches and wooden trim)
Zip ties (ideal for porch railings, fences, and bannisters)
Floral wire or galvanized wire (rust-resistant)
Gutter hooks (for hanging garlands along rooflines without drilling)
Avoid adhesives not rated for outdoor conditions—they won’t hold in cold or humidity.
Use Trimmings in Pots
If you have extra trimmings or pieces of greenery, stick them in a potted plant or even an empty pot.
Keep Outdoor Garlands Fresh Longer
Even though outdoor temperatures help prolong freshness, weather can still dry out greenery. Extend its life with these tips:
Mist your garland with cool water every few days, especially in dry or windy spells.
Keep garlands away from exterior lights that give off heat.
In very sunny exposures, hang garlands as close to the holiday as possible to maintain vibrancy.
In cold climates, freezing nighttime temps actually help the greenery last longer—like natural refrigeration!
Write it down!
Be sure to make a record so you don’t have to guess about what you used next year! Write down:
1. How many feet of garland you used
2. How many wreaths and what sizes
3. Where you purchased them
4. How much you spent
5. Reflections and ideas for next year
Record it all in your Nice List Christmas Workbook or Garden Notes — and include a few photos as well! It will take all of the guess work out of next year!
This listing is for The Nice List Christmas Workbook + The Nice List All Year.
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Christmas is a busy time, particularly for parents. With school performances, parties, shopping, baking, and decorating on top of the normal busyness of life, I know many people find the Christmas season to be… overwhelming.
But it doesn’t have to be.
Over the years I have developed a system that helps me stay on budget, on time, and sane! And now with The Nice List, I am sharing that system with you so you can have a more organized and more beautiful Christmas season.
The Nice List Bundle includes two separate notebooks:
The Nice List All Year: a gift-giving tracker to last for years to come
The Nice List Christmas Workbook: a planner for the entire Christmas season to keep you organized and help bring a little sanity to your holiday season
Both are available individually or together as a bundle.
The Nice List Christmas Workbook includes:
How to Use The Nice List
How to Use The Christmas Workbook
November Calendars: weekly and monthly (undated)
December Calendars: weekly and monthly (undated)
Weekly To Do Lists for November and December (undated)
What Sparks Joy for You? Setting priorities for the holiday season
Budgeting worksheets: to establish a budget for your Christmas season — and for each gift, too
Coupons & Codes: tracker for holiday sales and discount codes
Giving Lists: to help you prioritize where you spend you money and on whom
Thoughts on Thoughtful Giving: ideas for gift giving and reducing the stress of the holidays
Thank You Note Tracker
Holiday Card Tracker
Menu Planners
Baking Planners
Shopping Lists
Blank pages for notes and planning
With a little planning and some careful thought before a gift is ever purchased, The Nice List can help you keep Christmas from spinning out of control and help you find the perspective you need. The Nice List helps you set deadlines to avoid high shipping charges and has a tool for tracking all of those promo codes and sale codes that start to flood your email inbox, too.
The Nice List All Year gives you a place to track all of the gifts you give the loved ones in your life -- not just at Christmas time. It is designed to be used for multiple years and can be purchased separately if you have more than 15 people in your life to track.
The Nice List All Year includes:
How to use The Nice List
How to use The Nice List All Year
Giving Records for 15 people covering multiple years
The Nice List All Year is also designed to be used by anyone -- not just people who celebrate Christmas. From Hanukkah to Lunar New year, Kwanzaa to Eid, and birthdays, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day and more -- record every gift you give and make notes for coming occasions, too.
Plus, when you use The Nice List All Year year after year, you develop a record of your gift-giving, so you never give the same gift twice!
Not only is The Nice List a beautiful planner, but it also comes with online tools including an extensive giving guide with gift suggestions in every budget for every person on your list — parents, inlaws, kids, friends, teachers. We have suggestions for them all and exclusive discount codes as well.
I love the Christmas season so much I have written what my husband described as my “love letter to Christmas” — The Nice List!
Order your copy of The Nice List today, and give yourself the gift of a very organized and holiday season!
LET'S BE FRIENDS!
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Fresh greens are such an easy way to make a front porch festive! Happy Gardening and Happy Holidays!
at the close…
Keeping your Christmas garlands looking beautiful all season long doesn’t have to be complicated—just a mix of smart hanging techniques and a little bit of care. Whether you’re draping greenery across a mantel, framing a doorway, or wrapping a staircase banister, following these simple tips helps your garlands stay secure, full, and festive. With the right tools and a few preventative steps, you can avoid sagging, shedding, and the common frustrations that come with fresh greenery.
By giving your garlands the support they need and a bit of hydration along the way, you’ll extend their life and keep your holiday décor looking lush and inviting. The extra time you spend prepping and maintaining them is well worth the payoff—your spaces will feel warm, welcoming, and beautifully dressed for Christmas. With these six tips in hand, you’ll be able to enjoy vibrant, fresh garlands from the moment you hang them until the season’s end.
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