Giving your garden an ageless feel

Some garden scenes just have a soft look of days past,..there’s nothing to show from what era they come….ageless and a bit misty like they appeared out of the past.  How can you get this look in your garden?  See how in this three part series.

Part one:  Creating Period Garden Vignettes

First, look at your collection of those vintage Flea Market finds or gardening antiques so close to your heart. Which ones have the oldest look to them?  See what these gardeners have created:

Barbara Vengalli, “Some chippy, rusty iron amongst the beautiful roses.”

• Try to have nothing in your garden scene that shows the current times. Would it be an 80 year old watering can that a grandfather used? Or a faded set of motel chairs sat upon by a beloved grandmother and her friends?

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Photo by Arlene Brenneman

Arlene Brenneman says, “I have a secret to share about this container,… the sky blue lobelia was a huge hanging basket at a local nursery. I think it cost $10 and was very full. I figured it up and it was cheaper to buy the beautiful already established basket and replant it into my container than to buy enough plants to make it look this good. I do it every year for large containers. There, now my secret is out! My galvanized mop bucket with red geraniums featured here earlier was the same story – a large hanging basket replanted = instant gorgeousness.

Di-Ellen Davenport, “My sweet girlies lounging on grammy chairs in the garden….”

Ginny Sass says, ‘Here are some roses, tons of snapdragons and also some dianthus. I think this is so fun seeing other gardens. I live in Charleston SC, and it is such a historical place that most of the gardens are very formal. There is almost no one who gardens like all of us here. I wish there were.”

• Certain flowers, in a cottage rambling style can bring back memories of a childhood garden, long in the past. We grow the flowers that mean the most to us and ones that our mothers or fathers grew.  Geraniums, roses, peonies, wisteria all last for years and years sometimes in a garden, giving it a sense of age of longevity and familiarity.

Dawn Query, “Here’s my double wash sink planter.

• Hand tools worn  by the years, rusty tools long retired after ages of toil, old sprinklers, vintage aprons, flour sack pillow fabric and aged clay pots,…wheelbarrows we rode in as a child, broken but not discarded, still find a use in our vintage gardens.

Joyce England’s watering cans and kettle hanging on a picket fence

• Edit your garden so practical items, like hoses and electric cords are hidden. Stash away any ‘rats’ nests of clutter. Edit your vintage garden down so a person seeing it wouldn’t know it was not long ago.

Photo by ‘Stack-Ness Monstor’ of a garden in England where she is the gardener.

Photo by Shelly Novotny/Junkarta

Shelly Novotny, “I did this last year(photo above), using some inexpensive purses from thrift shops. Just realize that they may only last one season. They get wet and weathered. But it is cute!”

Linda Arbour, “Grapes I picked this morning.”

Photo Tips:

• One way to get a vintage garden look is through the photographs you take!
• Edit out anything in the scene that clutters or distracts, like those hoses and tools.
• Take advantage of a cloudy bright day to get a soft light on the garden.
• Use a photo editor to reduce contrast a bit or use soft focus.

To create a vintage look to your garden, it takes a bit of skill to ‘stage’ or style your garden as well as choose the plants and flowers,…you gather your ‘props and treasures and arrange them just so, pleasing yourself in your truly individualistic garden. If you have a garden scene like this to share, please post it on our Facebook page and label it Vintage Garden.  ~~ Sue

More vintage style gardens:

Part Two –  Creating a vintage Flea Market garden: Ancient beauty

Dreaming of my vintage garden

French twist

Meeting Debbie McMurry