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A trip to the attic, antique store or a weekend garage sale may uncover the perfect accent for your garden.

Use an old wagon to elevate containers creating a colorful focal point in a perennial garden.

Old bird cages filled with flowers and vines are sure to make visitors stop and take a second look. Include the stand and they can also provide a vertical accent for the large container keeping the planting in scale with the pot.

And old chairs don't need to head to the dump. A wicker chair can hold a pot of morning glories. Soon it will be filled with beautiful blue blooms.

And don't worry if the seat is missing. Chairs provide the perfect base for containers. Use them in the garden to raise the colorful blooms above surrounding plants. Or at your front entrance for a bit of color and variety.

An old table and container can provide a focal point for an arbor and small garden room.

And a leaky watering can starts a new life as a piece of art.

A bit more information: Recycle wine and other decorative bottles on a bottle tree. This garden art is based on an old African belief that shiny glass attracts and the bottles trap evil spirits. The tradition has been popular in the south for years and bottle trees can now be found throughout the country. Simply place bottles on sticks in the landscape or purchase one of the commercially available bottle tree frames.

For more gardening tips, podcasts and more, visit www.melindamyers.com


About Melinda Myers
Melinda Myers, best known for her gardener friendly and practical approach to gardening, has more than 30 years of horticulture experience in both hands-on and instructional settings. She has a bachelor's degree in horticulture from The Ohio State University and a master's degree in horticulture from University of Wisconsin-Madison, is a certified arborist, and was a horticulture instructor with tenure.

Outside the classroom, Melinda shares her expertise through a variety of media outlets. She has written over 20 books, including Can't Miss Small Space Gardening. She hosts "Great Lakes Gardener," seen on PBS stations throughout the United States, and "Melinda's Garden Moments", which air on network television stations throughout the country. She appears regularly as a guest expert on various national and local television and radio shows. She also writes the twice monthly "Gardeners' Questions" newspaper column and is a contributing editor and columnist for Birds & Blooms magazine. In addition, she hosted "The Plant Doctor" radio program for over 20 years and was a columnist and contributing editor for Backyard Living magazine.

For her work, community service and media presence, Melinda has received recognition and numerous awards, including the 2003 Garden Globe Award for radio talent and the Quill and Trowel Award for her television work, both from the Garden Writers Association. She has also received the Garden Communicator's Award from the American Nursery and Landscape Association and the Gold Leaf Award for Arbor Day from the International Society of Arboriculture.

For more information, visit Myers' web site www.melindamyers.com.