What Else Is There?

There's more to a garden than just daylilies. Heck, there's more to a garden than just plants. There is nothing interesting going on with the daylilies, except perhaps that Siloam Merle Kent is single again (sounds like a soap opera). So today I thought I would talk about structures in the garden.

What do I mean when I say "structures"? It's a way of talking about fixtures in the garden. They may be furniture, accessories, add-ons, or even buildings. Given that we live in an average suburban home with an average-sized back yard (most of which is sloping towards the house), there isn't a whole lot of space to work with. However, we do have a garden shed, an arbour bench, bird feeders and a bird bath, a deck and patio.

The shed is useful, but also became a temporary home for a family of skunks last fall (long story, another time).


The arbour bench was a fun weekend project for Mike and me. He built it, but I did most of the sanding and staining.


The main bird feeder is a source of entertainment for us. We can watch the birds and squirrels while we sit at the kitchen table. The birdbath is a functional piece of "sculpture".


The deck was built the first summer we were in the house. We stained it a couple of years later when we discovered that paper wasps were chewing it to bits. Another couple of years later we modified it to add a privacy screen when our neighbours installed a swimming pool. (The following picture was taken last year. The garden has grown a lot since then.)


The patio was part of the ongoing professional landscaping we've been getting done over the past few years.