There is nothing that makes your garden more magical than some well placed garden fairy statues.  They are cute and beautiful and can really enhance your flowers.  Here are some flowers to plant with them and some interesting ways to use them.

When using whimsical or mythical sculptures in your garden, you will want to use either a very formal approach or a very informal approach.  Formal works best with dragons, griffins, and gargoyles.  Informal is definitely the way to go with garden fairy statues.

An informal garden doesn't have to be messy, you can have a neat garden with fairies working their magic, you just have to choose the right types of plants.

Some of my favorite plants for including in an informal fairy garden are climbers, roses, and cottage perennials.  Among climbing plants, clematis are my favorite.  If you have a fence you can actually train different types of clematis that blooms at different times up your fence.  This is lovely, airy, and romantic.  Or you can use a single specimen.  Then take your garden fairy statues and have them peak out from behind the vines.

If you decide to do roses, create a whole bed of them.  Choose some that are climbers.  You will also want to include some of the new carpet varieties.  They are very hardy, bloom for long periods, and will give your garden statues a nice home.  Think about how cute the fairies will be settled in among the blooms.

I also like to use cottage perennials with garden fairy statues.  When you are shopping for perennials (meaning plants that come back every year) be sure to get flowers that are suited to both your sun conditions and your climate.  My favorite perennial to use with fairy garden statues is columbine.  It just looks like fairies should live in it.  But don't do your whole bed in it, columbine is a spring bloomer.

Garden fairies used well will bring a sense of magic to your garden.  Choose ones you really like and you will not be disappointed.

Many people favor religious garden statues in their gardens, and St. Francis is one of the most popular religious figures to use.   St. Francis of Assisi is the patron saint of animals.  He lived from 1182 to 1226 and is reported to be able to communicate with the animals.

In garden statues St. Francis is usually depicted with animals or holding a large dish to feed animals from.  He wears a monks robe and has a monks haircut.  Many people feel that having a St. Francis garden statue brings a sense of peace to their garden and house.

St. Francis garden statues come in many sizes from very small to very large.  How you use one depends on your style.  Generally, the larger the garden, the larger the statue it can handle.

When deciding on what kind of St. Francis to buy, think about the space you will put him in and the effect you would like to achieve.

For more formal gardens, or very large cottage gardens a life size (or nearly life size) statue will usually work best.  A fountain featuring St. Francis can easily become the focal point in any formal garden.  While a St. Francis holding a bowl to put birdseed in makes a great accent in a cottage gardens.

If you have a smaller garden, then you will want to stay with a St. Francis figurine that is knee height or smaller.  Place him in front of your favorite plant and you will have an interesting conversation piece.

Whatever garden statues you choose be sure not to overdo it.  You don't want your lawn to end up looking like a bad Christmas decoration job all year.  Keep the sculptures to a few in each area for the best effect.

A St. Francis garden statue will bring peace and tranquility to your garden, and you will enjoy him for years to come.

There is nothing that makes an impact in your garden like large garden statues.  They provide a focal point that your garden can be centered around and help keep your garden looking great even in the winter time.

When you are selecting a large garden statue you will want to keep in mind the amount of space that you have to use as well as your personal style.  The more space you have the bigger your statue can be.

Also pay attention to the type of material that you choose.  The most common materials are resin, concrete, metal (often copper or bronze), and marble.  All of these materials are durable and well suited to garden sculptures.  Concrete and resin are generally less expensive than copper or marble.

When placing large garden statues there are two basic schools of thought.  You can make the sculpture the centerpiece of your garden and light it with outdoor solar lights, or you can have it blend in.

Border gardens often work the best for blending sculptures in.  In this type of garden, your plants will surround your green space.  These types of gardens are quite often quite big and you can use a large sculpture to draw attention to an area that you particularly want to highlight.

Island gardens are great for making your sculpture the center of attention.  You can place your large garden statue in the middle of the bed and plant your flowers and shrubs around it.  This approach can be both whimsical or formal depending on the sculpture and plants that you choose.

When you are planning a formal bed, be sure to plan it out on paper first.  This way you can get a good idea of how it will look as your plant mature.

Large garden statues can work in a variety of settings and types of beds.  From formal to informal, in rock gardens and perennial beds large statuary in your garden can make all of your beds really pop.