It's very rare now to walk into a nursery or garden centre and not be confronted with a bronzed woman lounging in some shallow form of modesty. They're everywhere. At the front door; next to the counter; drawing your attention to the new annuals or gazing at you seductively from the lawn mower section. You would have to be wearing blinkers to miss them.

And, it appears that the retail industry is becoming far less discerning in what it offers and the days of little boys peeing and blushing pixies are but a distant memory. Some of the recent collections are up there with Formula 1 bimbo models or Hooter's waitresses.

Stylized couples, life-size bronze sculptures and the modernization of formal classics appear to be the big sellers. But my question is, "Who buys these?" While they appear in their abundance at retail outlets I'm yet to see any that reside in local gardens.

Maybe those who purchase them place them in more secluded spots than the gardening shops? Perhaps the lawn-hugging lounge babe is couched across a creeper in the backyard rather than in the middle of their front garden turf? Who knows? They seem to disappear from the nurseries but never reappear in society.

Maybe some Victorian vigilante is knocking them off to rid society of its ills? Whatever the case, they can't be ignored - they don't seem to be going anywhere fast just taking up floorspace that could have been granted to more interesting plants.

So, would you (do you) have a nude sculpture in your garden? Would it offend the neighbours if you did? Would you care? Interested to hear your thoughts.

Posted in Landscaping at 6:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Fortunately I have something to show this month as part of Carol's "Garden Bloggers Bloom Day". April was a write-off with most of my flowers dying off or failing to bloom early enough. Yet this month has been a standout, thanks predominantly to our beautiful Aussie natives.

So, without further adoo sit back and enjoy a few of our wonderful blooms.

Continue reading "GBBD: May 08 - GTNI" »

Posted in Flowers Gardening at 7:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

If there's one headline you will never see in the newspaper it would be, "MAN BLINDED BY SOLAR GARDEN LIGHTS". Why? Because they are so dim and pathetic at providing the result they're meant to achieve. But then maybe our expectations of these little garden wonders have been a tad too high? Maybe, we're comparing 'apples' and 'oranges' and become disappointed because our 'orange' doesn't seem to match the expected 'apple' - so to speak.

Garden lighting, for most gardeners, has been the 'icing on the cake' rather than the cake itself. Unless you've started your garden with the intention to include illuminating your plants, walkways and garden hazards it's probably an afterthought that's more dream than thought. And once a garden is established it's not an easy task digging trenches for electrical cable trying not to disturb tree roots and navigating your way through garden beds.

Which is why solar lights became an option for you. They didn't require cords - or if they did, they didn't need to be interred at the same depth as a corpse - plus they could be positioned anywhere in your garden with a minimum amount of fuss. And, you didn't need an electrician to install them.

As night fell, you waited expectantly for these garden lights to shine out and illuminate your garden as though you had reversed the effects of day and night. Instead, you found these lights to almost be as useless in the garden as gnomes. The brightness emanating from them would struggle to compete with a candle during dusk and certainly wasn't the shining force you had imagined.

What did you expect? A million candle-power beam that kept the neighbours up at night?

In the cold, hard, light of day - when your solar lights are renewing their energy for the 'big' night ahead - it seems that these were never meant to compare with their hard-wired counterparts. And while they may struggle to provide a great deal of illumination they still do have a purpose - as focal points or leading lights along your garden paths.

And, there are 'solar lights' and there are 'SOLAR LIGHTS'. The technology is increasing rapidly and new products are being introduced to the market with far better output than they did years ago. Plus, they're getting cheaper. But it pays to know what to look for when considering whether these lighting instruments will work in your garden.

Buying tips for solar garden lights

1. Light Strength - this is measured in mcd's (Millicandela) which is the rating used to assess the brightness of LED's. The higher the number, the brighter it is.
2. Cords or Cordless - if your solar lights come with cords it's usually because they share a power source. This is produced as a stand complete with a photoresistor, rechargeable batteries and wiring to power up these lights. However, if you're sharing the power source between a few lights then expect that they won't be as bright as those which have their own power source - but they should be cheaper.

   Plus, cords in garden beds are never a great idea anyway. It doesn't take much to forget they are there and thrust a garden spade onto them rendering them useless.

3. Sturdy - consider that your solar lights will be in your garden as often as your plants and will need to weather all conditions that prevail in your climate. Check that the materials are robust and won't break after the first cold-snap or heat-wave.
4. Be realistic - these lights will never compare with their fixed peers so when they claim to illuminate a focal point within your garden "just like electrical lighting", allow common sense to prevail. Technology in solar illumination hasn't achieved those results yet and I'm sure it will be decades before they can find more efficient ways to make these work.

They are a great addition to any garden provided you understand their limitations.

Posted in Garden Tools Landscaping at 7:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)