A garden is nicer if it represents your individual personality and is not just a copy of what every person in the neighbourhood is planting.

I suggest using whimsical planters among the flowers that are in the ground can be a cheap and amusing way to demonstrate your creativity. Anything can become a planter if you envision objects in the right way. Go to rummage sales and find large candle holders that can be turned into reservoirs of dirt and water. Toys can also be used – a little red wagon can hold a nice number of plantings, or you can, if you want to cultivate a somewhat bizarre image, buy some dolls and cut holes in their heads, then plant your blooms in the openings and place the dolls here and there in the garden randomly, or make a tableau of flower-headed dolls, for example add a table and you have a tea party. If you are not so venturesome, you can place tasteful statutes of figures such as angels in your garden and wind flowering vines around them. Or show your support for your local team by obtaining a garden gnome wearing a t-shirt advertising your team and use the gnome as a centerpiece for a combination of vines and plantings which can be placed in the crevices of the gnomes. You can also let the passers-by learn about your hobbies. If you are a bowler, plant flowers in a bowling ball. If you are a golfer, use the case which holds your golf clubs to cultivate tall and beautiful sunflowers. Not the sporting type? If you are a writer, hollow out a large dictionary and voila – your garden will be a concrete representation of your poetic nature.

And cooks have a plethora of possible planters at hand. Recycle old pots and pans, mugs and cups, roasters and toaster ovens and instead of filling a landfill, they can fill your yard with color and joy reminiscent of the scent of a good meal sitting patiently at a table and ready to be eaten. Remember one person’s junk is another person’s treasure. Express yourself with planters and don’t bother about any stuffy neighbors who think there is only one right way to do a thing.

Be original and think out of the box, or think with boxes, because watertights boxes also can be decorative additions to your garden. How wonderful to have your garden be a reflection of your interests, your feelings and your personality. Such a garden is the nicest garden of all!