Go for the Greenery!

Bring autumn indoors by collecting bittersweet boughs, fig branches heavy with fruit, dazzling purple plum and smokebush cuttings, or fiery Japanese maple twigs and arranging one or two in a narrow-necked bottle (like globaltable.com's, at right) for a serene, sculptural display. Or fan out a thick bundle in a rustic metal urn for an elegant explosion. "Three large containers holding fall branches make an incredible room divider," McGukin notes. For year-round interest, "gather Southern magnolia, camellia or lemon-leaf branches to fill a large space with a lush natural arrangement," she adds. In springtime, budding dogwood or cherry boughs herald the coming season.