Outdoor Sculptures & Fountains

Choosing a Garden Sculpture

• Allow your own personality to dictate the sculptures and other ornaments you display in the yard. The garden's size will dictate the size of sculptures to be placed within the garden. Large gardens really demand large pieces of art while smaller gardens are dwarfed by large sculptures. Think about where you will place a sculpture before you buy it. If you are considering a large, Greek-style marble statue, you might wish to situate it in a traditional garden environment alongside lawn, a flower border and hedge. Alternatively, you could set up a classic corner nook in your garden with a marble statue as a focal point alongside luxurious loungers or cushioned seating surrounded by tropical plantings. Allow your personality to shine when choosing your garden sculptures, which will result in a natural and coordinated flow of color and designs from the home to the garden.

Adding Fountains

• Adding fountains to a garden landscape provides mobility, sound and height interest. If you already have a pool in the garden, then adding a fountain will probably just entail connecting it to the existing pump. Whether your pool is situated in a rock garden or a separate pond area and surrounded by water plantings and other greenery, the addition of a fountain will draw the immediate attention of any spectator. Adding fountains to a patio, deck or any other part of the yard does not need to entail massive excavation work because solar-powered fountains or small decorative water features in barrels or stone are options. Alternatively, you could make your own barrel garden.

Enhancing Your Garden Landscape

• Sculptures and fountains will enhance your garden landscape and can provide you and your visitors with continued delight. As many garden ornaments age, they acquire a patina that adds further interest to their appearance. Animal sculptures are effective ornaments in garden beds and existing plantings, and they add surprise for visitors. Large wind-chime sculptures are decorative features that give the added benefit of tinkling chimes that enhance relaxation hours in the garden. Water-feature fountains come in all shapes, sizes and decorations; they add further elements of sound and movement to the landscape and can be situated anywhere.

Finding Inexpensive Garden Ornaments

• If your budget does not cover the purchase of expensive garden sculptures, artwork or water-fountain features, then an option is to make them or find less expensive ones. Look for salvage that could be turned into artwork to use in your garden; you may be surprised what other people classify as junk. A lick of paint can work wonders on old barrels, sculptures and other ornaments and will help them fit into your garden. Wood is an ideal and natural sculpture choice to enhance a garden. If you have a woodpile or collection of old branches and windfalls, you could use some of that wood as individual garden sculptures or to make unusual ornaments for your garden. Varnishing or painting wood ornaments makes them more weatherproof than unfinished wood.