Lady G, that is a great pic. Couldn't have posed that frog better. LOL
Stormyla, You can pick up the balls on the ground just about anywhere, it's the ones on the metal post that are hard to find and that is the one I lost. I bought them last year at Joanne Fabrics. The one in my area sells all kinds of cute little garden things. My hose guards and Rics frog riding gnome both came from there. My local store doesn't have them this year.
Love your North wind.
Garden Objects
Holly, It's a shame they are from Joannes. Our Joannes really puts everything on deep sale after the season, so there is never anything left over. I usually always go there at Christmas, but didn't this year. It might be worth sending them an email on the off chance they have one in a warehouse.
Stormy your sleeping Leprechaun reminds me of another bathtub pose. I think her name begins with a S.
The ground cover at the toad house is just weed seedlings that I'll hoe out, that area will be covered with hosta leaves soon and almost cover the house.
I worked on this garden area most of the yesterday, I just bought the cast iron birdbath this spring on my bus trip to Holmes County. This is the bed your Rose-of-Sharon is in, thought it would give it some height.
Very nice Lady. The birdbath goes very well there. It is a lovely bed. Do you light your beds at night?
Thanks Stormy, I have solor lights, and there is the street light across the street on the corner, the white fence reflects the light quite well at night. I have blue mini Christmas lights in the weeping cherry by the watergarden that are on a timer.
Here is another view of the bed, taken from the wide end, it narrows down as it gets close to the water garden so there is room to walk comfortably.
The large rock is to prevent the gate swinging open and crashing into the flower bed and it was too heavy to move very far, the wire fence is to keep my 2 wilds ones out of the bed.
stormyla, I am sinfully envious of your North Wind garden seat and iron fence.
Bootscraper, Yes, Here is mine. Got lots of use this year with all of the rain when preparing for the swap. The wheel behind it is the cart holding plants from the swap and those to go into my expanded "fence" bed.
Hose Guides, well I have several kinds. Here's the first.
Here's the finial type. This one works pretty well because it spins. Look at how much that Hosta wire pot heaved. A number of the ones holding the mini hostas heaved, Guess being so small they weren't planted that deeply. Have 5 or 6 of those to resettle.
Hummingbird Hose Guides. These ones work the best. Probably because they are taller and have a long tube that spins. Tore this bed apart yesterday. Moved a dozen Iberis that grew too large for it down to the outside edge of my roadside bed.
Balls, I love the shape of spheres in the garden. I dug some plants out of here for the swap and I'm not sure what is going to go back in here yet. So, Plop down goes a large ball. I have 2 of these that move around a lot!! LOL
There are several of these concrete balls in my beds. Used to be I needed bright spots in this dark tree line bed. Look at all of those Maple seeds!!
Here's an elevated one. This bed is completely under maples and is always dark. Of course, it is the most difficult for growing things, except bulbs. There were Iris planted between all of these trees and this winter the voles had a feast on them. Also, the Allium are new and planted in Permatil. There were older purple Allium planted next to them which also provided those varmits with winter food.
I'm mostly garden object-resistant. I have a gnome that lives on a shelf in the basement because I "haven't found the right spot yet." Hose guides look awfully tempting, though.
I do have a birdbath. Bluejays don't mind drinking the Robin's bathwater, I guess. Or maybe they don't know...
Not what I would have chosen, but this solar-powered fish turns blue at night. I just plonked it down out back to see if it works and haven't "found the right spot yet" for it either...This flicker was in the yard today; he probably thought he was "down shore" or something.
Beautiful Bluejay, Claypa and wonderful birdbath! Oh Come on, bring that Gnome out of the basement. Move him all around the garden until he finds his Nirvana! Name him Nomad Gnome!
Hose guides are a great invention. Really saves those plants on all of the corners. But I find that you have to try several before you find the type that works best. On flat ground, height does not matter. But, if you have even small slopes, the taller, the better and make sure they spin or they make tugging the hose difficult. Those hummingbird ones came from Amazon.com marketplace.
Great photo, Claypa, "Down shore", is that a Maine term?? I think the fish is what attracted your Flicker. Bet it makes a nice glow in the garden at night.
No, I hear people say that around here! In Maine they say "upda camp". I shot up there this weekend, found a good garden hose in my storage locker, and got a picture of some tiny unidentified Amelanchier.
You're right, "Down the shore" refers to the Jersey Coast. The Delawarians got to the Del and Maryland "Beaches" Ny'ers go "up camp" too.
Beautiful shrub.
I think we could do a whole thread on the pros and cons of functional garden objects. Some things are so pretty, but also pretty useless. Other things are ugly and useless. LOL. My garage has become a repository for poorly designed garden items. I hate wasting money on things that don't work. Clearing out some of that clutter now.
Good Will and other charity retail stores love getting garden items. They tell me they are best sellers.
LOL claypa! But isn't it "upta camp"? I think that's the name of one of Bob Marley's CDs? Have you ever heard him? http://www.bmarley.com/ For those of you who don't know him, he's a comedien from Maine and is a riot. Everyone appreciates his humor but 'Mainahs' love him because they can relate to his "wicked good humor" :) My daughter has given me one of his CDs and a DVD and I saw him a couple of years ago when I was in Maine for Christmas - as a matter of fact she's already got tickets for his show on June 13th when I'm in Maine!
Ok, enough OT chat - time to catch up, loving all your photos! Pamgarden, I love your purple chairs and Holly, where oh where did Jules get your "thinking frog"? If I ever get my endless stream project started (or finished!) I'd love to have one! Claypa, the fish is great - thinking it would look cool near our pond :) Stormy, your collection amazes me! I've only been seriously collecting garden whimsy for a few years but if I keep giving my family ideas for Christmas gifts maybe I'll catch up with you soon :)
This is an oldie but a goodie, my "cat" from Maine sculptor, Bo Atkinson. He actually calls them "roos", not sure why? Hoping when I'm in Maine I can somehow squeeze in a stop at his place when I'm traveling north to see my mother! I lost some of the Hellebores in front of him but there are new babies which will soon grow up around him!
LOL claypa! But isn't it "upta camp"? I think that's the name of one of Bob Marley's CDs? Have you ever heard him? http://www.bmarley.com/ For those of you who don't know him, he's a comedien from Maine and is a riot. Everyone appreciates his humor but 'Mainahs' love him because they can relate - he's "wicked funny" :) My daughter has given me one of his CDs and a DVD and I saw him a couple of years ago when I was in Maine for Christmas - as a matter of fact she's already got tickets for his show on June 13th when I'm in Maine!
Ok, enough OT chat - time to catch up, loving all your photos! Pamgarden, I love your purple chairs and Holly, where oh where did Jules get your "thinking frog"? If I ever get my endless stream project started (or finished!) I'd love to have one! Claypa, the fish is great - thinking it would look cool near our pond :) Stormy, your collection amazes me! I've only been seriously collecting garden whimsy for a few years but if I keep giving my family ideas for Christmas gifts maybe I'll catch up with you soon :)
This is an oldie but a goodie, my "cat" from Maine sculptor, Bo Atkinson. He actually calls them "roos", not sure why? Hoping when I'm in Maine I can somehow squeeze in a stop at his place when I'm traveling north to see my mother! I lost some of the Hellebores in front of him but there are new babies which will soon grow up around him!
A few more members of the "frog band" were added this spring - I think Phoebe likes the accordion player! LOL
Picked up an armillary, actually two, earlier this year at a trade show. Rick placed this one at the corner of the driveway but it's NOT where it 'belongs' - I've got my own ideas for it :)
This is the other one. I have a suffering Rose at the base which I'm hoping I can revive and coax to climb up it.
edited: oops, the picture looks like a bit odd, the pink Rose in the background is actually doing quite well but there's one poor little stalk you can barely see which the armillary is supporting.
This message was edited May 27, 2009 4:10 AM
Dysfunctional garden apparatus, there outta' be a law. I bought these beautiful hose guides, cast iron beauties, which work well in our clay, but aren't long enough to stand up in amended soil in the beds. Solution: drive in a length of 1" pipe and put the decoration in it.
Stormy, after 5 years in Trenton we went, "down ta'da shore".
And RCN my Bob Marley's not a comedian, he was a Rastafarian. LOL :-) Ric
LOL Ric, but "my" Bob Marley's funnier :)
Chopped the head off this one - supposed to support the Clematis. Little did I know when I planted the Clematis that it was a "bush type" - duh! It was a bonus plant with a large plant order years ago and I had no idea it wouldn't climb!
These cranes have been around for a few years but now that we have the area by the small pond cleared out it's a perfect spot for them! The iron 'cattails' were purchased at the State Arboretum a few years back from a local artist who's also a "Mainah". As a matter of fact her grandfather was the sculptor who created the "World's Tallest Indian" which is a well known attraction in Skowhegan, Maine :) http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/6162
Another gift from my Christmas 'list' last year :) It's a hummingbird wind sculpture but I think they forgot to include an additional section of the stake - it's too short! I've got to figure out a way to extend it and get it higher because it's so low to the ground that it never blows in the wind :(
For those of you who didn't see this on the Spring Projects thread, my new "toad house". The staked frog/dragonfly and stone frog were both gifts from my mother - more from my Christmas 'list' :)
Another from that thread, my "recycled" Grasshopper perched on the rock I found in the creek earlier this spring.
A japanese lantern and bird house - Rick took this picture and I'm not sure what happened but the lower part of the picture is too bright? I've actually had birds check out the house even though it's low to the ground but they didn't stay - Lucky quickly scared them away!
Speaking of Lucky, not really a "garden object", but I got a kick out of this one! He and Phoebe were running in the hoop house and this is where Lucky landed to get away from her!
This sundial was a wedding gift and I never had a post for it. My gazing ball used to sit on this post but was blown over in winds last year and broke! The back of the post cracked open as well but I found a way to hide the crack and it makes a perfect post for the sundial :)
Rcn, A piece of pipe from the local hardware should raise your sculpture. You can get different effects from different pipes. Black iron will eventually rust, galvanised can be painted any color about a week after you wipe it with vinegar, and stainless (more$$) will remain somewhat steel-like, or bright metallic. Ric
Grrrrr...problems this morning - DG keeps timing out and I lose everything I've written! Let's try this one again...the arbor I put up in the fall of 2006. The climbing rose and Clematis were planted in the spring of 2007. The rose will probably make it to the top this year and I'm going to coax it up, over and down the other side. The Clematis were a huge disappointment - both were supposed to Patricia Ann Fretwell with large, double pink flowers - NOT! And worse yet, they're not even the same :(
I chopped it off in the photo but in the lower right is a pretty bush type Clematis - Clematis recta 'Purpurea' with maroon foliage and teeny little white flowers. If it stops raining soon I've got to get a picture before the blooms are gone! I've also got a few more objects to share if I remember to get photos of them.
Almost forgot - Holly, see that large boulder in front of the arbor? That's the huge one my son "collected" last winter in Maine and sent back home with me. It was so heavy all Rick and I could do was park the van, crawl inside and push it out with our legs! Right now it's staying where it's at until we can figure out how to move it! LOL
Thanks Ric, good idea! I think my father-in-law has some old copper pipe laying around and maybe I could make that work :)
RCN, You can walk a boulder anywhere you like with a tripod, chain, cargo straps, and lawn tractor. It's not too difficult but may take a little time to develop the technique. If you want a better description, Dmail Holly. Ric
Ric, I think we've got the proper equipment to get the job done - my problem is how to get it INTO the gardens without destroying everything in its path :( If I could just get my strong son here he'd move it anywhere I wanted - he picked it up to load into his truck and then picked it up AGAIN to load into my van. Hoping when I'm in Maine in a few weeks I'll be bringing more home, just not that size!
Hi All. I am loving this tread. RCN: I am going to Maine in a few weeks. I had emailed Bo Atkinson a while ago to get an address and see if he had a studio. Got a vague kind of answer about him doing commission work - no address provided, so I guess I won't be visiting him. Fernwood has moved to Montville, so I will ask there if he knows of this guy (I am guessing he does).... who knows, maybe I can still find him and just drop by and look at his yard.....
Anyway, here is my favorite new garden ball. I got it at an antique shop last month.
I love iron fence pieces. Here's one that's looking good this spring.
