Favorite (YGP) Things—Part 1

There were no “raindrops on roses” at the 2012 Yard, Garden & Patio Show, but I did find many favorite things. I’ll share mine. Will you share yours?

In no particular order...

The scale and formality of the large jug water feature in the Sultan’s Paradise garden added gravitas to the garden, celebrating how water was used and valued in the courtyard gardens of wealthy Persians. It led the eye and enticed the visitor into the garden. (Garden designed and created by Paradise Restored Landscaping & Exterior Design.)


I loved everything about the Garden-to-Table edible display designed by landscape designers Karen Schwartz, Calandula Gardens, and Carol Senna, Melingo Studio. From a farm table set for dinner fresh from the potager garden to the cloche created from a reclaimed glass vase, the attention to detail was extraordinary. Every aspect of the garden was educational.

The Association of Northwest Landscape Designers (ANLD) created a booth filled with a luscious mix of plants.

Mark Sander Landscape Services made clever use of corrugated metal panels, creating a soft industrial look (note the framed pieces in the ANLD booth, photo above). I’m wondering if I could incorporate similar panels into a backyard fence somehow...

I had to stop and take a closer look at this diminutive moss purse found in the Creekside Treasures Farm & Nursery booth.

English daisies take me back to my early childhood when I imagined them to be part of fairy gardens. I still find them irresistibly charming. These were found in the French Prairie Gardens display.

Hardy cyclamens seem to be experiencing a resurgence in popularity. Different leaf patterns are appearing making it possible to create a mosaic of cyclamens in the shade garden. Out in the Garden Nursery offered these at the show.

Mossy. Earthy. Almost as if fairies could be found there. Very Irish. Very Hughes Water Gardens.

Wish I could have picked up this cozy fireplace nook and carried it home. I like the scale of it and the Arts and Crafts-style influence. The planted “picture” above the fire was brilliant! It was created by Landscape East & West.

Anteak’s birds, fish, turtles and garden seating are carved from teak, often reclaimed. They are an investment, but they would last a lifetime. I particularly loved the carved pelican.

This re-use of easily found glass and canning jars stopped me several time in my tracks. What a clever way to create a one-of-a-kind chandelier! I found it in the Mutual Materials booth near their outdoor cooking display and demo area.



More YGP favorites to come in a few weeks. Please share what you found to be inspirational at the spring garden shows. We’d all like to know!