Wednesday, August 20

Gilding the lily

Choosing and using garden art

Photos/Betty Earl An elegant chess set created with black and white tile becomes the focal point in this lush landscape.

Every time I walk past the old birdbath in my garden, I instantly recall the first time I saw that concrete ornament -- in the middle of a trash heap. The ornate pedestal was chipped and the elegant birdbath was broken into three pieces. Still, it had an undeniable charm about it. And though obviously useless at that point, I nevertheless fell madly in love with it. I gathered the broken pieces, lugged them home, and cajoled my darling husband into putting in long hours repairing it. While visitors to my garden don't know the associations I hold with that birdbath, they can see that it's old, that it enhances a section of my woodland garden, and that birds love it. Objects such as this make my garden feel homey, anchored, and tranquil.

Photos/Betty Earl A simple sign pointing to the owner's garden says it all.

It's true that good garden design elements and wise plant choices contribute greatly to making a garden feel special; but gardening isn't just a way to turn plain into pretty. Rather, gardening should feed the soul, nourish your love for beauty, and satisfy your creative urgings. Thus, choosing garden decor that is not only appealing but also says something about you is a great way to add a uniquely personal signature to your landscape.

Remember, garden decor is limited only by your imagination. There are statues, sundials, wind chimes, plant stakes, water features, birdhouses and birdfeeders, sculptures, benches and chairs, sun catchers, decorative weather vanes, unusual pottery, fountains, arbors, trellises and pergolas to play with. Garden decor can be functional if used to support or contain plants, it can create divisions between areas of your garden, it can hide an unsightly view, or it can add a sense of playfulness to the landscape.

Antiques in the garden

Integrating statuary or structures from a time gone-by gives the garden a sense of history. Though acquiring a 200-year old statue from Europe might not be feasible for everyone, that doesn't mean that gardeners can't turn their yards into enchanting places brimming with history. Filling a garden with memories can be as easy as using an old milk can as a flower container, using old stamped bricks for a patio, hanging an ancient wagon wheel on the garage wall, using grandma's broken china in mosaic table-tops and stepping stones, or painting a worn-out chair to welcome guests.

Photos/Betty Earl Leapfrogs add a touch of playfulness to this garden.

Get creative with garden art

Adding art to a garden is like adding beautiful illustrations to a book. Show me a garden with no art, and I will show you a boring landscape. Sure, beautiful blossoms and tantalizing foliage is appealing, but a well-sited piece of art is pure magic. Throughout our gardens, we use objects that carry emotional weight to support the mood of each section. A statue of Buddha resting on a flat mossy rock at the edge of the pond reinforces a contemplative spirit in that section of the garden. A wildly colorful mosaic fish next to a koi pond shows our playfulness. Some gardeners dream of Japanese lanterns, while others prefer an angel, an animal, or modern art. Whatever your taste - serious, playful, or spirited - there is art out there to place among the blossoms. Be creative and open to the idea that your garden can be much more than foliage and blooms.

Bring your hobbies to the forefront

Do you have fond memories of train sets chugging around the basement? Did you spend long winter evenings playing chess with your dad or checkers with your siblings? Do you believe in fairies? Maybe it's a fondness for frogs. Take your passions outside! G-scale (garden scale) trains can withstand the elements, chess/checker boards can easily be set up with black and white tiles, fairy gardens can be elaborate or simple, and frog sculptures can be had from the eerily expensive to those costing a few dollars, at most.

Photos/Betty Earl A bejeweled mosaic fish waits his turn in the pond.

Become a garden junkie

Do you have a wild imagination? Or love a good deal? If you want your garden decor to be truly unique, you have to shy away from the garden center ornamentation and hunt for your own treasures - at flea markets, garage sales, consignment shops, or resale stores. The cost of transforming trash to treasure is imagination - and perhaps a few cans of paint. But the possibilities of wonderful creations appearing from junk are endless. Metal pieces welded in the shape of a cat, bowling balls coming back as bugs, or decoratively-painted clay pots turned posh birdbaths are just a few examples of discarded items that can be brought back to life as interesting one-of-a-kind pieces of art. Garden junk pieces can be functional accessories or outlandish creations. If it makes someone smile, you have performed magic.

Allow your imagination to fly free. Observe garden decor in public gardens, in magazines or on-line articles, and the gardens around you. I'm sure you will come up with a mixture of decor and plantings that is uniquely yours, that will be the envy of your friends and neighbors, and that will give you pleasure as long as you live and garden at your present address.

Author of "In Search of Great Plants: The Insider's Guide to the Best Plants in the Midwest," Betty Earl is a Master Gardener, photographer and lecturer. She writes for numerous regional gardening magazines, is a garden scout for both Better Homes & Gardens and Midwest Living magazines and also serves as a regional representative for the Garden Conservancy. She lives and gardens in Naperville.