Yard Art

I'd never been fond of "yard art". Random, non-organic things have no place in a garden. At least that was my belief for a long time. Over the last year or so, I've become more tolerant of it, even appreciating the strategically placed obelisk or urn to add another dimension to the garden. I still have no use for gazing balls, gnomes, or critters. And neither does my mother.

So when, after I'd helped my parents clear out an overgrown patch of their Florida Keys yard, my mother said she thought she'd like a stone turtle to sit there, I balked. She couldn't be serious. But she was. Well, I figured the best way to handle this was to shop for one myself, maybe find something that looked more like a rock than a turtle.

It turns out turtles are not the most common of yard decorations. Now, if you want frogs or toads there is quite a selection. Or birds. I actually saw some cranes I wouldn't mind in my own yard. If I lived in a place where cranes occurred naturally, that is. But turtles were rather scarce.

I found this horribly cutesy reason-I-hate-yard-ornaments thing:

A turtle that doubles as a solar light:

A Trio of Tiny Turtles (about 2" high!):

Then, finally, a tasteful mosaic turtle:

From http://www.wisconsinmade.com/. It's really cute. I'd have bought it in a minute if I'd been looking for a turtle for Mom's Massachusetts home. But I've never seen a box turtle in the Florida Keys. Mom needed a sea turtle.

Finally, venturing away from stone, I found it. A cast aluminum sea turtle:

It's available from several retailers. I bought Mom's from www.windandweather.com. It, and Mom, arrived in the Keys yesterday. I hope she'll send a picture of it in place guarding the front steps. For now, it's hanging out on the dining table:

Thus ends my foray into yard ornaments. For now.

disclaimer: I do have one pink flamingo in my yard. It came with the house, and I didn't have the heart to trash it. But it is well-hidden (except in winter) by some tall sedum.