Garden Art Anyone Can Create (2024)

Create instant interest in your yard with garden art made from recycled or inexpensive materials.

01of 22

Try Japanese Inspiration

A backyard Japanese garden uses art and design to make a peaceful setting where you can relax and meditate. Here, stones create a dry riverbed; smaller rocks at the back of an area and larger ones in the foreground create the illusion of distance.

02of 22

Decorate Sheds

Found items and decorative planters dress up the wall of an old building at Northwind Perennial Farm in Burlington, Wisconsin. You can adapt the same idea for a garage, shed, or other wall at your home.

03of 22

Contain Your Art

Highlight small garden art pieces—homemade, recycled or purchased—by setting them in a container. This galvanized tub contains two sculptures, petunias and other plants in a graceful arrangement.

25 Creative Containers for Your Garden

04of 22

Create Elegance

At his Ohio farmhouse, Nick McCullough creates order and elegance in wide-open spaces through both plantings and art. "I like gardens to feel really natural," he says. "But what people don't realize is what makes them feel loose and welcoming is actually good structure and organization."

05of 22

Salvage Style

Enliven a landscape with recycled materials. Check salvage shops, garden centers, even curbside giveaways. Use materials just as you find them, or give them a fresh coat of paint so they stand out in the garden.

06of 22

Make a Mosaic

Mosaic stepping stones, benches and other projects are easier to create than you may think. Surround with colorful flowers to highlight your work.

07of 22

Fill a Wagon

An old wagon becomes an inviting and whimsical setting for container plants.

Container Gardens Just Right for the Midwest

08of 22

Try a Headboard Gate

An antique wood headboard, trimmed to fit, becomes a gate between the front and back yards.

Great Garden Gate Ideas

09of 22

Play with Your Art

A checkerboard painted on an old stump sits ready for action next to twig chairs.

10of 22

Create a Scene

Make an eye-catching vignette just by turning a pot on its side. This Troy, Kansas, garden features 'Sikes Dwarf' oakleaf hydrangea at left, 'Glauca Globosa' Colorado spruce behind the pot, 'Blue Spruce' sedum inside the pot and spiky Hakonechloa macra 'All Gold' in front.

11of 22

Step it Up

Turn a short stepladder into a focal point with a coat of bright paint, then decorate the steps with your favorite potted combinations. Look for old ladders at garage and estate sales, thrift stores and flea markets.

12of 22

Reuse Old Chairs

A coat of paint turns an old chair into a colorful perch for a flower container.

Easy Annual Flowers That Deliver Summer-Long Color

13of 22

Theme to Your Interests

To inspire your garden art, think about what you love. If it's cats, for instance, maybe you create a cat garden with cattails and a cat sculpture.

14of 22

Add Some Whimsy

You'll garner grins from both kids and adults by adding whimsical elements. In this Lincoln, Nebraska, garden, an imp nestles in the crook of a tree above a grapevine wreath nest of plastic dinosaur eggs.

15of 22

Decorate a Door

Recycle an old ceiling tin by cutting an initial from it. Half-depth columns frame an M on this toolshed door.

16of 22

Paint Scenes

A whimsical fairy painting in blues and purples on a garden shed forms a pretty backdrop to the many colors of lilies in a Janesville, Wisconsin, garden.

17of 22

Use Birdhouses as Decor

A collection of old birdhouses and a vintage shutter dress up the side of a shed.

18of 22

Hang It Up

Just as you arrange garden plants to grow at different heights, you'll want garden art to appear at different levels, too. Try placing something high, such as in the trees, at eye level and down low item to await discovery. In this garden, an old birdcage stand elevates a hanging plant. Even simpler: Hang a painted birdhouse from the stand.

19of 22

Make a Birdbath Planter

Damaged and broken items may no longer be useful for their original purpose, but they make great art. A damaged birdbath becomes a succulent container garden here. Add a base of soilless potting mix, plant with succulents and finish with a mulch of Spanish moss. Decorate with your choice of accessories, such as this candy dish planter, compass and spoon.

Make a Living-Roof Birdhouse

20of 22

Blend Art and Landscape

Try using the shape and design of your garden art to accent plants. In this South Haven, Michigan, garden, the fanciful, delicate curls of an old iron chair look just right with the profusion of tiny white flowers from sweet autumn clematis and alyssum.

21of 22

Line up Collections

One small item may not catch your eye, but a collection of them can be striking. Children's antique watering cans provide a colorful display on a ledge in an herb garden in Troy, Kansas.

22of 22

Balance Vertical and Horizontal Accents

Nestle vintage newels throughout flowerbeds for vertical accents to balance a horizontal landscape.

20 Secrets to Landscape Success