Garden Ornaments and Landscape Design

There are many kinds of garden ornaments that can be used in your landscape design.

When selecting, one of the most important things to think about to make it successful is the scale in relationship to the space. For example, if you have a very large house and you place an urn near the front door, the size of the urn should be quite large. Does it catch your eye as you approach and look great? Or does it look like just a small after thought?

Garden features can be placed along the walkway as you approach the front door. They can be placed on a patio. They also can be tucked into a planted area. When using one in this way, it is a good idea to have strong plants, such as evergreens, as a background to make it really stand out. Some garden ornaments can be used in the center of a formal garden.

Garden ornaments may be made out of a variety of materials, such as concrete, resin, clay, metal, lead, copper, and bronze.

Urns are really just fancy flower pots. An urn often has a sculptured bottom, and the pot itself is elevated. This gives it an aura of importance.

When purchasing urns, it is better if they have holes in the bottom for drainage. Urns can be contemporary or traditional.

There are a vast number of sculptures on the market. Sculptures can be of almost any subject matter. However, you will find many of them replicating dogs, cats, birds, women, boys, and girls. Many have a more traditional look. There are also contemporary sculptures available.

Sculptures can be made of a variety of materials. Concrete and resin are very common. There are also sculptures made of lead, clay, metal and lead. If you are planning on leaving your sculpture outside and you live in an area with freeze-thaw conditions, be careful of objects made of concrete and clay, as they can crack. Interesting ones can be found in antiques shops. Make sure the sculpture is in scale with its surroundings.

Pedestals can be used when you want to display a piece of sculpture but need some height. The sculpture rests on the top of the pedestal. Be sure that the pedestal and the sculpture itself are in scale. You don't want a very small sculpture on top of a large pedestal.

Benches can be used on patios, at swimming pool areas, or on the lawn. They be located near a pond. You can also locate a bench just in a quiet sitting area. There are benches available in many types of material. You can find wooden benches in teak patio furniture collections. Old iron benches can be found in antique stores. Aluminum benches, made to look like iron, are sold also.

Fountains can be either casual or formal. Formal fountains are normally larger in stature and prominent. They might be used in a formal pool, as a focal point on a patio, or somewhere in the garden where you are creating a formal space. A formal fountain can also be set in the open space of a large lawn area.

A more casual fountain might be a bird bath fountain which creates a playful feeling. It can be tucked along the front walk as you approach the front door, on a patio, in a planted area, or in a flower garden. I have a little garden off my house filled with flowering shrubs and perennials. I have a birdbath placed right in the center. I enjoy watching the birds play and bathe in the water!

Speaking of birdbaths, it's fun to create a habitat for birds in your landscape. Birds need and love water. The birdbath can be a simple dish sitting on a wall. It can also be a fountain,as mentioned above, where the water is constantly moving and recirculating by way of a hidden pump. This runs by electricity, so you will need an outside outlet....there are pumps that work on your hose, but the water needs to be turned on when you want it to run.

Why not add a wild bird feeder to your landscape also? These might be on a pole, out in open lawn, hanging from a tree, or attached to your window. I have one at my kitchen window. What could be more peaceful than watching the birds while having your morning coffee? And the wild bird feeder itself can make a lovely garden ornament.

There are quite a few decorative bird feeders available too. As an example, I saw one the other day in my local bird feeder store. It was quite large and made by the Amish people in Pennsylvania. It looked like a house and was set on top of a wooden pole. The "house" itself (it was really a bird feeder) was constructed of beautiful wood and painted. It was very striking!

Sundials can be placed in garden beds or if large, can be set in the open lawn as a focal point. Many are made of brass. Please visit my page on sundial clocks.

Trellises can also be garden ornaments and create a nice focal point. They might be attached to a blank wall to provide interest, with or without vines growing on them. Trellises can be made of wood and left natural or painted. They can also be metal, aluminum or iron.

So, as you can see, there are many different garden ornaments that you can include in your landscape design and many ways to use them to create excitement and interest. This is the part of the design that you can have fun with!

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