We use natural stone for our water features almost exclusively. Our signature three basalt column feature contains some heavy rock – heavy enough that our guys can barely wrestle them into place without resorting to machinery. But what if you’re not six feet tall, 200 pounds, strong and able bodied? What if you have limited access to area where you want your water feature? These obstacles can be overcome by the use of faux rock.
Bud Hinegardner is a local craftsman and the owner/operator of the company Boulder Design. His Iron Mountain bubbler columns look as close to the real thing as we’ve ever seen. They come ready to be plumbed as if they were real core-drilled basalt columns.
They are also economical. The 43″ is $430, the 34″ is $340, the 28″ is $296, the 22″ is $220, and the 16″ is $160. Real columns easily cost double this accross the board! Come check ‘em out in Monroe.
Rain chains (‘Kusari doi’ in Japanese) offer a highly attractive and unique alternative to traditional downspouts. They are hung from the corners of your roof or canal to guide the flow of water into large barrels to catch the water from the roof for household purposes and gardening. They have been used for hundreds of years in Japan, and are a perfect expression of the Japanese knack for combining aesthetics and practicality.
Having a water feature doesn’t always involve having an actual pond. Dish stones are a fantastic way of bringing water into your garden. Pictured on the right is a stone that’s fed by a bamboo spigot. You can take this entire kit home for just $600! If you’re not so taken with the bamboo, there are many other options for fountains, perhaps a whimsical frog fountain or spitting turtle? Some people enjoy the look of copper with a nice patina. Go with what you like.
Core drilling a dish stone opens up new possibilities for the flow of water. An overflowing dish stone fed from below provides the effect of a naturally bubbling spring. We sell core drilled dish stones starting at $240. We can set you up with everything else you need to help you build this style of feature.
We’ve just installed a new rain garden at the nursery. A rain garden is a natural or landscaped basin that captures and soaks up water that runs off your roof, driveway, walkway or other hard areas around your home. A rain garden is planted with a variety of trees, shrubs, flowers and plants that can withstand very wet conditions in the winter and a somewhat dry medium in the summer. Because a rain garden is planted with a thick layer of mulch on the surface, it collects rain water like a sponge and allows it to slowly filter into the ground before it becomes polluted storm water runoff, resulting in healthier waterways and habitats.
We are now selling bat boxes from local artist/craftsman John D. Butler of Buckner Enterprises here in Monroe. John hand crafts functional art and log furniture from hand-milled cedar. What is a bat box? It’s a specially designed box that is placed high on a tree or post that provides a little living space for bats.
Although a well designed garden is a work of art in itself, in the last decade more artists and craftsmen have been creating pieces solely for placement in the landscape. This being said, you don’t have to spend a lot of money on a fancy sculpture to incorporate art into your garden. Gardeners have become more attuned to recognizing what a simple, well-placed structure or piece of art tucked into a “secret spot” can bring to their garden spaces. Challenge yourself to envision ways in which you can introduce elements into your garden that will stimulate as many of your senses as possible.
It’s not always necessary to go out and purchase something from a store to accessorize your space. People that do often end up with the same mass produced arbor or piece art as their neighbor. Be creative. Using an old bathtub as a planter works well. I have a neighbor who has a planting bed growing out of a brass bed frame! You can always get your kids involved in painting plywood animal cut-outs to hang on a fence or place in a secret location in the garden. Consider your primary and secondary focal points and consider what fits your particular style. Whatever you do, have fun!