Time for antiques in the garden

People that love antiques often enjoy gardening as well and there are many ways to incorporate vintage items into your flower beds or veggie patches. There are so many ideas in magazines and websites such as Pinterest that can help you personalize your space with antiques.

Architectural antiques are very popular. Old pieces of vintage fence, metal headboards and footboards and old pillars, gate and ironworks look great in the garden and make great boundaries or trellises.

Old cups and saucers make great little bird feeders or birdbaths for our feathered friends. Take an old or new birdhouse and attach vintage items such as glass doorknobs, old silverware, bottle caps, costume jewelry, old keys or just whatever you find!

Another garden craft idea you may enjoy is making wind chimes out of old flatware or tiny colored glass bottles. You can also make a “bottle” tree out of an old branch or iron frame and put brightly colored bottles on it.

A rusty old bicycle frame with a basket on the handle bars or back fender can be lined with cocoa mat and planted full of beautiful annuals. Make sure to add some vines that trail down the sides. Along the same lines, you can also use all kind of vintage containers such as baskets, pottery, graniteware, etc to use as planters. An old chair with a broken out cane seat can be repurposed as a planter also.

Don’t forget to check out garden catalogs for vintage roses, flowers and vegetables. Heirloom plants are beginning to make a comeback now that people can appreciate the iound red tomato. There are so many amazing varieties out there that are not hybrids or scientifically altered. I recently saw an heirloom tomato plant called “mortgage lifter” that was popularized in the depression era.

“Radiator Charlie,” a smart man in poor rural West Virginia was looking for a large meaty tomato to help feed his family. He patiently cross bred several old lines of tomatoes until he had strong seedlings that he sold for a dollar a piece which was a huge amount of money at that time. Word spread and people came from all over to purchase these large flavorful tomatoes and Charlie was able to pay off his mortgage in just six years!

Get out there and enjoy your antiques and your gardens at the same time!

Happy Collecting!

Jillinda Falen has been buying and selling antiques for over 30 years. She is a licensed REALTOR and estate liquidation specialist. You can contact her through the Houston Home Journal or via email at jcfalen@gmail.com.

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