Style on a Budget

Garden features

Seats, sculptures, ornaments, containers and other garden features can be costly to obtain in the style you want. Cheap options involve making your own, recycling junk and utilising found materials:

A garden seat can be made by chainsawing a seat shape into a fallen tree trunk. Or using slabs of wood (such as oak) to make a simple bench.

Old copper boilers discarded by plumbers can be made into beautiful large plant containers that take on a lovely tarnished finish.

Taking up a craft such as pottery or woodcarving (perhaps at evening classes) will allow you to make your own sculptures for the garden.

Imitation stone troughs can be made from hypertufa.

Discarded colanders, manual typewriters, broken flowerpots etc., can be planted up with sempervivums (houseleeks).

Natural items such as gnarled tree trunks and distinctively shaped rocks can be used as sculptural focal points.

Rusted, twisted metal can be fashioned into modern sculpures.

Living willow can be used to create arches, arbours, trellises and seats.

You can make your own topiary using clipped box or yew, or try the speedier option of training ivy over wire frames.

Glass bottles can be used to make low retaining walls, occasional paths, sculptures and border edgings.

Decorative ceramic tiles (leftovers, salvaged or from the tile shop reject bin) can be inserted into paving or used to decorate walls.

Architectural salvage yards often have a range of recycled items for garden use, such as old chimney pots, belfast sinks etc., but often ask a lot of money for these items, due to their increased popularity. Instead look in junk shops, scrapyards and skips. Don't forget to vet all the items friends and relatives are throwing away, to see if there are any potential treasures lurking amongst the rubbish. Learn to look at materials with fresh eyes to evaluate their potential for creating the garden of your dreams.

For more original ideas for your garden at Suite101.com try Gardens for Eccentrics and Individualists or Vegetationally Yours.

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