How to Gardening Fun With Secured Garden Ornaments

Mexican Sage and Wagon Wheel

Most think about the yard either for themselves or for simple curb appeal. Here is a secure idea for your ornaments, so they don't end up missing when you come home from work.

Things You'll Need

• Long handle shovel and a short garden spade shovel.
• Hand held cultivator
• Gloves or maybe not
• Ornament that can be secured unnoticeably
• Double hole brick
• Existing or new plant
• 1/2 Inch cable including plastic sleeve.
• Clay soil treatment only if needed. Comes in a bag and looks like fertilizer.
• Jug of juice or water

Instructions

1. 

   Cultivate the area by removing roots of old dead we-don't-wants and tossing all that guck into the trash. Fertilizer that breaks up clay soils is a fantastic helper to cultivate with, just don't over do it.

2. Take a break and have a drink.

3. 

   Smooth out the area with a rake, by using it as a pick axe to break up clumps, then smoothing with a light sweep with the forks and don't walk on it. You don't want to compact the soil.

4. Take a break and have a drink.

5. 

   Hopefully you have enough space to stage both a plant and the ornament from the wall for this step. Plant the plant via instructions from the store, but at least about 1 foot from the wall or fence.

6. Take a break and have a drink.

7. Once that is done, don't wait for the plant to grow too big. Dig a hole behind it, between the house wall and the plant, but avoid the roots. Do this by using a hand gardening shovel. This hole will be used for placing that brick into, but make sure you have about 36 inches of cable to weave through the hole so that both ends of the cable are sticking up through both holes of the brick.

8. Take a break and have a drink.

9. Now put the dirt back in the surrounding open areas of the brick so it is not visible to the eye, but don't get any dirt inside of the brick. Put the excess dirt evenly on an area that can use it.

10. Take a break and have a drink.

11. 

    The ornament you use is up to you, but remember that it needs to be visible enough through the growing season of the plant or all efforts will be waisted. The cable should be long enough to secure the brick and your ornament together. You may need extra depending on the size of your ornament. But after that is done, slide the tie ends down through the 2 holes so they are not visible.

12. Take a break and have a drink.

Tips & Warnings

• Remember to buy a good cable that is reinforced with a thick plastic sleeve, this will protect the cable from rusting.

• Do buy an ornament that is securable enough that it won't look obvious when you do secure it down.

• If you do plant something that grows rapid you may have to prune it down from time to time if the situation needs it.

• I used the fine cedar mulch for ground cover, it smells awesome and looks as though it goes with what I did with the wagon wheels.

• Think THEME, what it is you want to project in your garden and have fun with it, I did.

• WARNING - Do not let your gardener mess things up! They will criticize your work, because most paid gardeners do not take pride in their work, they leave the weed roots and then you have weeds again. The best gardener is the home owner.

Resources

• Lowes
• Home Depot