Making Bentwood Trellises, Arbors, Gates & Fences (Rustic Home Series)

Long has written a friendly, conversational book about bentwood garden accessories, some fantastic, others prosaic or elegantly simple. In nine main chapters, he covers selecting wood, making a basic trellis, more elaborate and decorative trellis designs, bentwood gates, bentwood fences, arbors, and trellises made without bentwood. He discusses the selection of plants for your structures, and finally, adds a chapter on simply enjoying your bentwood structures, even going so far as to include a few yummy recipes for muffins, teas, and shortbread to savor in your newly created garden environment!

The techniques outlined by Long can be easily adapted to your own individual designs and creative ideas. As Bertha Reppert, the founder of the Rosemary House, says, "I shall never look at plant prunings the same way again." Bentwood garden structures offer a natural, eye-pleasing alternative to plastics and mass-manufactured garden installations, making use of the garden itself to generate construction materials that might otherwise end up burned or in a landfill. --Mark A. Hetts