Traditional garden ornaments.(Design notes)(Garden Traditions )(Company overview)

Small garden, small ornament; large garden, large ornament" are the common sense words of advice given by Barbara Israel, the noted authority on garden ornaments. Israel's earliest contact with gardens was as a child growing up in Peapack, New Jersey, where she would sneak onto the grounds of Blairsden, the magnificent estate with formal gardens built by C. Ledyard Blair in the early twentieth century. As described in a New York Times wedding announcement for Blair's daughter in 1913, the estate was rich with shrubbery and trees, a lagoon bordered by stone coping on which were placed huge stone vases filled with seasonal flowers, and a driveway lined with busts of twelve Roman Caesars. Fast forward to 1980, when Barbara Israel purchased a house in Katonah, New York, and wanted to reduce the formal plan of the garden but needed to know more about horticulture. She agreed to give a neighbor golf lessons in exchange for gardening lessons. Israel proved to be an excellent student. Five years later she remembered Blairsden's remarkable garden ornaments and founded Barbara Israel Garden Antiques.

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The firm's success led to an increased demand for specific pieces, such as the squirrels and the Japanese Buddhist monk that are permanenet fixtures in her garden. As a result Israel started a new company, Garden Traditions, that produces ornaments modeled directly from the antique originals in her collection. The introductory line, first offered in 2006, comprised statues of women and animals, a bench, a fountain, a birdbath, and a pedestal.

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When selecting one of Garden Traditions' ornaments, Israel offers the following suggestions: "Bird baths (see far right) should be placed in the middle or on the side of a large or small geometric garden. The Donatello Lion left) is a wall fountain that can be used in a swimming pool, but the landscape needs to be creative. The Dorset Maiden(see above) is less than life size and can be placed in a small or a large garden."

"The ...