OUTDOORS : Hardscape Cements the Finishing Touches

Look at any eye-catching landscape and you’ll see more than prettyplants: It’s likely that accessories have been used to add finishing touches and pull the whole package together.

“Items like fountains and statuary personalize a yard and create a particular ambience,” says Jeffrey Garton, a partner in the landscape firm Paradise Designs Inc. in Dana Point.

Hardscape--the non-plant items used in a landscape--also enables you to tie your indoor decor to your outdoor “rooms,” says Garton, who cites a home in Laguna Beach he landscaped that used the same jade slate pavers outside as were used indoors.

Extending indoor design outdoors helps create consistency, says the home’s owner, Bill Strateman. “When you enter a house that has been accessorized inside and outside with similar patterns and designs, you and visitors feel a sense of balance.”

There are as many landscape accessories as there are indoor decor items. Hardscape pieces include fountains, waterfalls, pottery, statues, cement animals, birdbaths, topiary, garden furniture, umbrellas, sundials, arbors, wind chimes, hammocks and more unusual additions, such as antique bathtubs and sinks used as planters.

“The most attractive yards have a combination of plants and hardscape,” says Aurora Brandelli, a salesclerk at Villa D’Este Fountains and Statuary in Garden Grove.

Manufacturers are even creating clay and ceramic wall hangings meant to be used outdoors. They help liven up otherwise plain, boring outdoor walls, says Bob Gibson, co-owner of Pottery Plus in Fountain Valley, which carries a wide variety of outdoor and indoor home accessories. “These plaques give homeowners a much nicer view than the bare block walls that are so common here in Southern California.”

Hardscape items also enable you to create a theme in your yard. “If you want a Japanese setting, stream beds and bridges are good accessories as well as a pagoda and Japanese-style lighting fixtures,” Garton says.

A tropical look is brought out with pools and waterfalls, large boulders, jungle theme porcelain figurines hanging from trees and tropical background music.

To create a Southwest atmosphere, you need more than cacti. Fire pits, antique grinding wheels and boulders in tans and reds are good for the Wild West theme, Garton says. “You could even add a broken-down cart with animal skulls next to it.”

For a country theme, a strategically placed cannon would catch a lot of attention, as well as an old plow overflowing with flowers and a wine crusher. Birds can be enticed into the yard with a bird bath or large bird feeder.

An English garden should have statues and animal figurines, as well as a weather vane, bird bath, arbor and gazebo.

One accessory that often serves as a centerpiece or focal point in many yards is the fountain. “There are hundreds of fountains in many colors that create a variety of atmospheres in the yard,” says Gibson. “Fountains range from the traditional Italian statue types with animals and women pouring water out of pitchers, to modern unadorned fountains in oblong and square shapes.”

When it comes to statuary you can take your pick from life-sized models of music masters such as Mozart and Beethoven to small lion heads and cupid sculptures.

Bird baths are another popular hardscape item. There are hundreds of birdbaths in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, says Gibson. “Besides your traditional bird bath, you can find baths made out of tree stumps and even some that hang from trees.”

Not surprisingly, pottery is another favorite accessory.

“It’s easy to find the perfect containers for your yard because there are so many shapes, sizes and colors,” says Gibson, whose store provides container custom-coloring in over 50 colors. “You can find anywhere from really small two-inch pots to containers that are three feet high and three feet wide.”

There are many different types of pottery made from a wide variety of materials. Some high quality containers are constructed of Italian red clay, cement and ceramic. Less expensive pots tend to be composed of plastic and Mexican red clay.

Like any product, quality of workmanship in accessories runs the gamut. This makes it important that you carefully check an item before purchasing.

“In general, the better the detail on a fountain, statue or pottery, the more workmanship has gone into it and the higher the item’s quality,” Gibson says. Look carefully at areas such as faces for fine detail.

Also check for a good finish. “Some finishes are cheap and will scratch or chip off easily,” Gibson says. “You want a product that has been high fired and has a very hard finish that can’t be easily scratched or will crumble.”

Many fountains and statues are made with durable cement, which can’t be chipped or scratched. This can be painted with any color to match your outdoor decor or even given an antique, weathered look with the application of a new product called Rust, Gibson says.

There are a variety of places to look for the ideal hardscape pieces for your yard, Garton says. Besides home and gardening stores, mail order companies sell outdoor accessories. Or if it’s a more unusual piece you seek, try antique shops and garage sales. Garton even suggests that his clients keep their eyes open while vacationing. “If you like Southwestern and are traveling to Arizona, then take a look around. You just might find the iron cart you’ve been looking for.”

Before buying anything, do some planning. “It’s important to sit down and decide how many pieces you want and where you’d like to place them,” Gibson says. “Draw out a rough plan and measure the spaces where you want to place items so that you don’t end up bringing home a fountain that is too large. Besides measurements, bring along color samples.”

Once you purchase your new accessories and place them in your yard, ensure their longevity by keeping them well maintained. “Although accessories tend to take less work than the plants in your landscape, they still need some attention,” Garton says.

To clean cement fountains and birdbaths, Gibson suggests using a nontoxic product that dissolves calcium buildup. You can also buy products that retard algae growth.

Clean cement accessories like statues that don’t come in contact with water on a continual basis with hot water and bleach. Pottery can be scrubbed with a solution of hot water and vinegar.

To keep ceramic pottery shiny and from becoming brittle, periodically apply a vinyl and leather protectant product used on cars, Gibson says. Before planting and every six months, apply a water sealer to red clay pots, which will prevent leaching.