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Garden dioramas

hostaLes
11 years ago

I was following hostamanphils thread on War Paint and saw almost hooked's diorama with the Sioux(?) Warrior. It was so lovely. It struck me that many of us have these little (or not so little) dioramic parts of our gardens that need to be shared. Here is the first from Theresa's Angel Garden.

Theresa was just walking past and the way the sun struck the Blue Angel and her angel caught her eye. She ran (well-walked quickly) into the house for the camera. I think she did good!

Almosthooked, would you send a copy of your War Paint diorama to this thread? Please-please.

Les

Comments (15)

  • almosthooked zone5
    11 years ago

    This was war paint in the spring and is not as pretty now but I still love it.
    Faye

  • almosthooked zone5
    11 years ago

    I find the silly little things and set them close to some of the hosta. It keeps me remembering the names although I am getting better at a few of them now . I have praying hands and this was as close to it as I could find that could be outside

  • almosthooked zone5
    11 years ago

    I almost forgot Les , Your angels are very well the most perfect pair and hopefully someday mine is as nice as the one on the right.
    My summer music and her entertainer

  • hostaLes
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    I can almost hear the music AH and I love it.

    Theresa

  • User
    11 years ago

    Okay, I get the idea.

    I cannot show the two latest additions because the hosta has grown to cover them. I have the big rocks (maybe artificial I'm thinking) in the pots which I found etched with the name for two of my hosta.

    One is Faith, the other Peace. Those are in addition to the name tag from the nursery buried in the edge of the pot, and the staked metal tag where it shows in pictures. If these two ever get planted, the rocks will be located so they are visible.

    A while back I added a few small trinkets I called mnemonic devices to the pots, so that like Almost Hooked they would help me remember the names. The best one was a metal figurine of a dragon, in the Hosta Red Dragon pot. Then a tiny brass teapot in H. Teatime. A white ceramic elephant in H. White Elephant pot. A twisted convoluted purple plastic drinking straw in H. Totally Twisted, a puzzled monkey in....guess what....H. Funky Monkey.

    I'm still looking for a tiny pair of boots, which I can color bright purple....for H. Purple Boots....but it draws my attention already with its magnificent purple flower scapes all in bloom....how can you not recognize something that obvious!! Likewise no need for a blue ribbon on H. Fragrant Blue Ribbons, it stands out with its intense powder blue and creamy white edges like no other in the garden.

    Resin figures are pretty durable it seems. I really like the piano player beside Summer Music.

    With a good reminder, it doesn't have to be one of the Ten Foot rule hostas to know who's who. And you can make a game of it for your garden guests...guess what the name of this hosta is, looking at the figure in the diorama.

    Tick Tock is an easy one to set up. For Tobacco Road, how about an old Prince Albert can? Frozen Margarita, a fake one of course, can't waste the good stuff. I have Erie Magic, and all I can think of is a small barge/flatboat.

  • hostaLes
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Maybe diorama was the wrong word. Vignette seems more appropriate. It was almost 2 years ago that someone posted pictures of her dioramas or vignettes of her miniatur fairey hosta gardens. I loved them. If anyone remembers them can recover the thread here I would love it? I was new to HF at the time and wish I had known how to save the thread for my beck and call.

    Look for my photos in the near future with my plum colored rocking chair as a garden feature. I would like opinions regarding my leaving it empty as an invitation ti sit or use it as a platform for displaying a large potted yellow hosta.

    Les

  • hostahillbilly
    11 years ago

    Diorama, Vignette, 'Fairy Garden', I very much like this thread, and hope it sets a record for posts. Actually, I had to 'look up' the word diorama, and made me come back to further explore this thread.

    In the past I would have and have called threads something along the line of 'garden decorations', but then again, I'm a simple hosta hillbilly, teehee.

    I'm, nonetheless, glad that this thread is started, and hope I find the time to contribute.

    hh

  • User
    11 years ago

    Hmmm, with the plum colored rocker, I would add a fern stand beside it with the yellow/gold hosta on that. If it is a wire fern stand, bring it to life with aqua or some other color that goes with the plum and gold. Very colorful and inviting spot. Yeah, I'd love to sit there and just look around at the rest of the garden.

  • hostahillbilly
    11 years ago

    {{gwi:976336}}

    {{gwi:976382}}

    {{gwi:1071783}}

    {{gwi:952374}}

    {{gwi:952373}}

    OK, only one little area of the garden, and with a vole-patrol theme, but I'll try to get another theme of 'shots' made and uploaded.

    hh

  • hostaLes
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    :)

    I looked at your last photo and immediately thought "vole patrol" before reading your caption. Are your "Inspectors" on patrol full time or indoors at night? The shorter haired one looks really intense!

    Lovely view of your garden by the way. Could you post a close-up of the statuette and plaque by the birdbath?

    I am learning that having hostas in pots can be much more than utilitarian. Beautiful job HH. Thank you.

    Les

    You have given me inspiration! Theresa

  • User
    11 years ago

    Your vole patrol appear to take their job seriously.

    Yes, I think that HH's use of containers mixed with the in-ground hosta is something to study and learn. MUCH more
    than utilitarian.

    I had a child's plastic wheelbarrow that I drilled holes in and planted with aloevera and hen & biddies/chicks, very easy to roll it around and it really flourished. For the longest time, I sat my little pig planter in it as well. However, after a number of years the wooden handgrips/handlebars rotted and I moved Petunia Pig to the rail of our deck. After the back porch was enclosed and the Carolina wrens could not get in to build a nest over the water heater, they began building their nest each year in the head of the pig, protected by the prickles of the aloevera. This little "Pig Family" have raised two clutches of babies so far. Five babies this year! And they are still hanging out in the garden, fussing at me for trespassing on THEIR PROPERTY. I think those seven birds are still a family group, and I hear them calling when one gets separated...a distinct locator call until there is a response.

  • User
    11 years ago

    I now have an aged sundial which I plan to put on a cement colum....or maybe just a 6x6 short post....and surround the spot with hosta or daylilies or something that can take mostly sun. Using plumbers putty or perhaps florist clay I can secure the sundial to the top of the post.

    There is a nice website for Little and Lewis, located in Bainbridge Island WA. Although the two may now be in Mexico, the site remains. If you want to see some lovely really spectacular use of dioramic items, browse through what they've created in what was once a plain and simple old house garden. I love it! In fact, I had to have one of their cement white doves, to hang over the peak of my front stoop gable, since my house is named White Dove.

    Let's see if I can feed the link below without losing this amount of typing.... Note also, they made hosta leaves out of cement or hypertufa. I have their book, A GARDEN GALLERY. Quite inspirational.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Little And Lewis

  • almosthooked zone5
    11 years ago

    HH your grey cat is taking time out to smell the flowers. Cute! My cat is trying to compete with my large ceramic cat and I must say has got a lot more mice and voles under her belt too. Don't we all love our animals( almost as much as our kids )
    Faye

  • hostaLes
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Moc, isn't your link an inspiration? And Faye is that your cat or your large ceramic cat. She almost seems too perfect.
    Theresa

  • User
    11 years ago

    Theresa, I find Little and Lewis a great source of inspiration. Their gardens are so lush and have come together with reckless abandon and romantic excess...