Fantastic Fences - Fun And Funky In The Garden

A few weeks ago I attended the yearly GardenComm (Garden Writers of America) symposium in Buffalo,New York, a city that's all about gardening. Their annual event at the end of July, 'Garden Walk', put them on the map, featuring  over 400 gardens - all for free.  If you've never been, it's well worth a trip.

Some of the homeowners that were on the tour were kind enough to open their gardens to us, and they were all pretty inspiring. It turns out there's no end to the fun you can have in a garden, and I'm not just talking about the plants.  We visited gardens set on tiny city lots, most of them surrounded by a variety of fences. Some were fancier than others, but none of them were ordinary - these folks turned them into works of art.

Talk about 'out of the box' ideas - this one made me laugh. Hey, why not paint flowers on the fence? You'll have blooms all year and a backdrop of color that never quits.

Hang something cool on the side of the house to jazz it up. Don't you love the way this fish is color coordinated with the garage door? And it spouts water!

I've always wanted to grow a planted wall like this but mine always die. Clearly the Buffalo gardeners have nailed it.

 I thought the idea of plants cascading down the fence was pretty clever. I'm not sure what those things are, but I want them.

Even better, liven up a corner with a mirror. It makes the garden look bigger.

These little containers hanging off the fence are charming. It's like going to an art museum for plants.

Here's an idea - coordinate a border of plants on the fence with the ones below it.

How charming is this? You could paint anything and pretend you're somewhere else.

This one took the cake - if you live in Buffalo, land of snow, you definitely need bright plants and orange garage doors. Buffalo gardeners rock!