Why choose concrete lawn ornaments?

Concrete Garden Artwork

It may seem strange to use concrete as an ornamental material, but concrete is now being used for far more than simply laying paths or roads. It is a versatile material and relatively inexpensive, so it was no surprise when people started to look at alternative uses and particularly considered the garden as an area to utilize concrete. Concrete is made from cement, gravel, sand and water, is the most used manmade product on earth and is a $35 billion worldwide industry, employing 2 million people in the United States alone. You can trace its origins back to Babylonian times, but modern concrete, as we know it, has been in production since 1756 when a British engineer, John Smeaton, started using cement in the construction of concrete. Nowadays, a wide variety of recyclable materials are used in the production of concrete, so it is also environmentally friendly. Concrete has many properties that make it suitable for lawn ornaments; it has the ability to be molded to certain shapes; it has a high compressive strength, low elasticity and low-tensile strength. Concrete can also be painted, easily, so this gives it an added attraction when making concrete lawn ornaments.

Types of concrete lawn ornaments

The simplest and most widely seen garden concrete ornaments are the pillars, often a bird bath or a sundial. Bird baths made from concrete are stable, they will hold water, nuts, seeds and bread as they can be constructed as a shallow dish with a lip on which the birds perch. Sundials made from concrete can have the sundial mechanism fitted into the concrete at construction, or drilled into later, another good aspect of concrete you can drill it for fixings. Another popular use of concrete is to make stone garden benches, durable, solid and stable; you can see many concrete benches in the gardens of stately homes across Britain. Somewhat more whimsical uses of concrete developed in the 18th and 19th centuries with the advent of the garden statue, made of concrete. Popular themes for these statues were Greek influenced gods and goddesses; signs of the zodiac and various representations of wildlife. There are concrete deer lawn ornaments which reflected a tradition of hunting, but also harked back to mythology and paintings of paradise which always depicted deer and birds.

Looking after your concrete lawn ornaments

If you decide to add concrete garden ornaments to your lawn, paths or flowerbeds, you need to follow a few simple rules for taking care of the concrete. It can be painted, so if you choose the right paint then that can act as a protective covering. Part of the charm of concrete is how it looks as it weathers, so you do not want it to be kept too shiny and new. Using a concrete sealer will protect it against the rain, especially on the base, which often sits in water. If you can place your concrete lawn ornaments on a piece of wood, paving or deck block, that is good as it will keep them from getting soaked with mud. Choose and maintain your concrete garden ornaments carefully and they will last a lifetime.

Author Patricia Wainwright Resource: Get all the facts about landscape gardening and gardening articles at GreenThumbArticles.com!

Article Source: Concrete Lawn Ornaments

Article From: Organic Gardening Articles

Have you ever looked at an old chair or child’s wagon that you were about to discard, and wondered if you could repurpose it as garden art?  Well, you’re not alone!  Many of us look at what we are about to send off into the great garbage heap down the road, and have second thoughts before letting it go.  ”Maybe I should hang onto that old bench,” you say  ”Perhaps that rusted wheelbarrow will last another season,” you rationalize.  Sound familiar?  Not to worry; you can save the item and save the day as well by using these items in your garden.

Old bike used as garden art!

Everything old is new again…

All it takes is a little imagination and a household or yard item that you don’t mind leaving out in the elements.  Yes, what once was a thing of beauty can again become a thing of beauty in a new and unique way!  Keep in mind however, this is a one-way trip.  Once your 1970s blue metal step-stool leaves your home (if that’s where it came from), and spends time gracing the great outdoors basking in the heat of the sun, and the rust inducing rain and snow, it won’t be fit to grace the kitchen any longer!  But, you knew that.
Look around your house, in your garage or attic; chances are that you will find something that can be used in a unique way to house a plant or give an interesting backdrop to a climbing vine!
Popular items to use in your Earthen Garden as garden art include:

• baskets
• pots ‘n pans, or any container
• bicycles
• tricycles
• gates
• fencing material
• chairs
• benches
• old shoes
• bird houses
• fountains
• architectural pieces

An old bathtub lazes in the shade!

Imagine That!

The only limitation to the types and variety of materials you can use in your garden is your imagination. Got a car bumper or an old rusted push lawnmower?  Use it!  Got an old pedestal sink or a claw-foot bathtub?  Recycle them into your yard instead of throwing them away.
Use whatever you want, wherever you want – after all, it’s your garden!  And the beauty of it all is that you just can’t go wrong.  If the item you choose doesn’t look right where you have it; move it!  If the metal piece rusts after a while; no biggie it ads character!  If the basket falls apart over time; simply throw it away!  It was going into the garbage anyway…

Wooden barrel and baskets add dimension to a back porch!

Creating garden art from your discards is a refreshing outlet for your creativity, and a fun diversion from planting weeding and pruning.  To top it off, you’ll get a lot of “wows”, and “ohhhhs” from your visitors to your garden.  And, you’ll be the envy of the garden club as they wonder “how did she get so creative?” 

About the Author

By: Vincent

Vincent J. Zuzow is an Internet Marketer, Photographer, Writer, Musician and father of four. His passions include his children, helping people, studying relationships, songwriting, Macintosh computers, gardening and the hidden secrets of the world!

http://earthengarden.com/

http://playvincent.com/

http://darksecretshadows.com/

(ArticlesBase SC #2174627)

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/ – A New Look For Old Discards: Recycling Throw-Aways Into Garden Art!

What is the Origin of the Garden Gnome?

In the book Gnome and Garden by Marcus Mennes, he writes that the origin of the word “gnome” may have come from the Swiss physician and alchemist Paracelsus who “referred to gnomes as earth spirits … In his theory, spirits personified the elements: gnomes (Earth), salamanders (Fire), sylphs (air), and nymphs (water).” Mennes further writes that the garden gnome may have become popular as a symbol of the earth spirit in gardens during the Renaissance and Baroque periods (when topiary and other garden art and garden fountains became popular).

How did these little guys make it into so many gardens around the world? It looks like we can thank the Germans. According to Adrian Morgan in the book Toads and Toadstools, garden gnomes “are one of the many customs imported to England from Germany (such as the Christmas Tree).” They are “placed as symbols of good luck and guardianship, and pose as protectors of the lawn or fish pond.”

Where do you place your garden gnome? Morgan writes that “In Britain the Chelsea Flower Show still insists on banning gnomes from its exhibitions, but in 1992 almost half the respondents to a questionnaire in a gardening magazine (Home and Garden) admitted to possessing these garden ornaments”.

Many may consider a garden gnome a thing of novelty. But now you know that it actually looks after you and your garden.

By Shannon Mendez