With prime season for garden ornamentation here, a decision is needed. Advice and comments, please.
Spring arrived early this year and the entire town has been at peak ornamental shrub and tree color for about 10 days now. It’s distracting to drive as my eye is continually drawn from neon yellow forsythia to white pear trees, mottled magnolias, and the pale pink weeping cherry and flowering plum trees. You may not know this about me but I Hate Gardening and never gave a moment’s thought to any tree for three-quarters of my life. However, after the freakishly heavy February snowstorm in 2010 that broke almost every branch of our flowering plum in the front of the house, the trees got my attention. My posts on that Storm Damage Aftershock and the Repair showed the debris and how things were trimmed back on the bet they would rebound.
So when I saw the profuse pink blossoms in front and back this week, it seemed time to turn my attention to garden furniture. We don’t have any and it’s been a low priority because it’s basically an ornamental vs. a practical issue given our location in the heart of the Lyme disease belt and the evil bambis who regularly prowl the property. Then I made the mistake of browsing Barbara Israel’s site, one of my favorite places to drool over rare and beautiful garden antiques. And suddenly, there was this pair of English wrought iron, Regency style “tree seats,” ca. 1940, that fit around a medium-size tree [top]. Instant love.
I could really envision a circular bench around our flowering plum, in front of the house, even though it’s asymmetrical now.
Our weeping cherry — seen here through my kitchen window — is not a great candidate since it leans, though a bench would enhance the overall view.
Since the antique bench is out of the question, additional research turned up a small number of contemporary choices, all somewhat affordable (under $500). Each requires assembly and only two provide a critical dimension for a circular seat – the diameter of the donut hole.
The Toscano Roundabout, from Home Depot, fits a tree less than 30-inches in diameter. Check. It has three sections, is described as powder-coated 7/8-inch tubular steel and heavy duty.
Napco’s Tree Hugger and Plant Stand bench bears a glancing resemblance to the golden oldie but also is the most costly. A full 63-inches across, the interior section looks huge.
Longwood Gardens Wrought Iron Tree Surround is the least costly but comes in six pieces. Too many moving parts? The center measures 24-inches across, which would be a good fit for a medium-size tree. It’s modern and handsome though a trifle generic looking.
If I actually bought a bench I suppose it could be placed around each of the trees to see where it looks best although I can see how that strategy might lead to double trouble.
The antique is my favorite, with the Home Depot a close second. I do like the Napco back, but the seating looks like a plant stand – and not comfortable. I agree, the Longwood Garden bench has too many parts.
All that said, I think you need to keep looking. None are perfect. My 2cents. So glad the tree is recovering.
I liked the Longwood Gardens one the least… at first. But the backs on it and the Napco (which looks giant) are angled, where the HD option looks straight up and down. I think the more solid back of the Longwood might be more comfortable than the tubular pieces? Although, you’d have to sit in the ‘designated areas,’ since the angles where the seat sections meet would not be comfy at all… So it actually has 6 seats, rather than an infinite number, like the Napco. (Not really infinite, but you know what I mean… Continuous)
The HD isn’t continuous, though, because of the arm supports. The antique version also has those. Will those be a good or bad feature?
Are the seating surfaces all the same distance from the ground?
I obviously have no specific advice on a choice, just things I’d consider in choosing for myself.
Thanks for the opinions. I had to laugh. DH told me to call the antiques dealer and find out how much hers is. Allison found the nicest new one, which I will add to the post.
Rhome — all the dimensions are different in terms of height, width and the size of the donut hole. The tree in front is rather low since the damage so I need to measure before I decide on anything. We won’t actually be sitting on it all that often between the ticks and mosquitos. But nice to have on special days for sure.
The nicer ones turn out to be quite expensive. Also thinking I might spend some time at the local auctions this Spring. There’s a good two months of those before garden furniture season ends.
You didn’t make me Shopping Editor for nothing.
I’ve always loved those kinds of benches. Auctions are a good idea
I’m not a gardener either. Plus I battled Lyme for a number of years and can understand the concern even though we live in a very different part of the county!