SHARING SECRETS: A (Non-plant) Thing In Your Yard That You Love

k-england
Jul 1
4 min read

Edited by Cathy Tylka, for Let’s Talk Plants! July 2025.

Hops grow on a broken wooden ladder. Photo credit: Rachel Cobb.

Current question -

Do you have something in your yard that you purchased, inherited, got out of the refuse, or got from a thrift or garage sale, that you love?

Tell how you use it in your garden to promote something that is grown near, around, with or inside of your lovely place.

It can be as simple as the plastic that comes with the purchase of strawberries and you use for another planting adventure, or a piece from your bedroom, that has been changed into a way to help vines, roses, grapes, etc., to grow.

Basically, I’m saying anything received or purchased. Tell me how you use it to complement your garden, or if you see it somewhere else, such as in someone else’s garden, that’s great too!

Rachel Cobb, Zone 7b, has a wonderment in her garden…

...It's not a unique idea, but ladders are my go-to tool through my veggie garden. They are great for the cats to climb. I add netting around the ladders to protect the young plants from animals that might eat them. They work best for climbing veggies like beans and cucumbers. I often plant a few sunflowers near them as well for easy support. I've an extra-large ladder that I've converted into a bench by adding an old porch swing. I make many phone calls from that seat in the shade. I have several ladders and am always on the lookout for more at yard sales. And they look fun in photos. Happy summer.

Gerald D. Stewart of 92084 responds…

...I collected bottles in high school, mentored by a neighbor who told me that if I went south of town into the hills, and saw a cluster of trees, likely there was a house there long ago that had an outhouse, and the residents, dumped bottles in it. I found a hilltop with a clump of trees, and found where the grass grew much taller, an indication of where the outhouse was. I dug and found bottles.

When my family members stopped canning, I got a lot of old quart jars, including a really old one with a gasket for the glass lid. The lid and jar turned blue in the sun. It has been in the front yard for fun for decades. I was watching an Antiques Roadshow episode and someone brought in that same old quart canning jar. They were told it is worth $150. It's no longer in the front yard, but there are ceramic jugs and interesting shaped glass bottles still there for fun. They bring back wonderful nostalgic memories of times past.

Ida Rigby, of 92064 relates…

...I took a little turn about the garden and realized that over the years I had purchased sculptures that created a bit of an ecumenical garden for meditative moments. We occupy a geological formation in Poway that contains beautiful water-worn rocks of every size, hue and shape. So, I have lovely stones to play with.

They create an austere mountain setting for a Buddha and a foil for Lord Ganesha. I often wonder if Hindus are amused by Western travelers’ being so enamored of him.

I fell in love with him in Nepal; it’s hard to resist the charm of elephants.

An Aloe brevifolia is the perfect crown for a serene Buddha.

St. Francis is surrounded by a few of his beloved animals and occupies a shady space between two 20-year-old Toyons. A Turk’s cap grows up into their branches and trails on the ground. Facing St. Francis is a convenient bench to sit on and contemplate the scene. This corner is dedicated to my father whose favorite saint was St. Francis even though he did not practice any traditional religions.

Cathy Tylka of 92026 shares…

...I love my Cécile Brünner rose bush on this old bed frame.

Cécile Brünner has small double flowers, developing from high-centered buds to form pom-poms. It was named for a family member. The flowers appear abundantly in large clusters. It does well in poor soil. The shrub is short but vigorous, with very few prickles, smooth, mild green leaves.

Karen England, of 92084, admits to being a really good plopper, ...

... having plopped a new-to-her 4.5-foot-tall vintage copper church steeple in her garden some twenty years ago in an out of the way place in her yard thinking that at a later date she’d move it to a place of honor. At one time she even had plans for her hubby to build a tiny shed that would be a “garden chapel” just big enough for a church pew she had inherited. None of those plans happened and the steeple is still exactly where she initially plopped it, among roses, bay, oregano and lemon balm.