In article 1045952401.208608@yasure, "Valkyrie" wrote:

Some of my best finds for "garden stuff" has been in the least likely
places. Well, least likely for those who limit their perusing to garden
centers, nurseries, garden mail order and the like. I was thinking about
this when I read the request for a source for seedling trays. I found some
great trays at Boeing Surplus one year. They were actually sorting boxes for
mail, 2 ½ feet long and a foot wide, hard double wall plastic, just like the
post office uses, except these were sort of UPS brown and FIFTY CENTS a
piece. I also found the neatest garden wagon, it was used for moving some
sort of equipment I think. The thing was about 2ft x 4ft, had a 3in thick
solid wood deck, axels and wheels that would handle a 1/2 ton payload and a
PADDED handle. That cost me a whole FIVE DOLLARS!

That is probably a welder's wagon. They make superior garden wagons. But
they cost a bloody fortune. A great find indeed.

I picked up some twisted up rebar at a construction site that made a dandy
trellis over a side garage door for my silver lace vine, absolutely free! I
've found stepping stones at a landfill and once when I was driving by a
house that was undergoing a 'garden redo' I also was able to get some pavers
that were destined for the dump, "sure, take all you want". I got some nice
beveled cedar siding from the scrap pile in a new housing development, and a
partial roll (just enough) of roofing tar paper, and enough 2x4 scraps to
build a garden shed for about $20 with what I had to actually purchase.

I remember going to the Boeing surplus, oh, couple decades back, & piling
free wooden boxes onto a pickup with the idea of chopping it all up for
firewood. But it was such heavy good wood I ended up pulling the boxes
apart & saving the boards & plywood for all sorts of projects. I hadn't
thought of that for years. The Boeing surplus is still there, I wonder if
there's still free wood to be had, or if too many people know about it by
now. Those wooden boxes were super well made because they had to strong
enough to ship big metal airplane & engine parts.

I found "planters" at an auto salvage yard. What these things actually were
used for was a metal cage guard over lights on heavy equipment. They were in
a lovely state of light rust and when turned bottom up became moss lined
planters, I got a roll of sprocket chain (aesthetically 'aged') at the same
place and had six of them hanging over the north side of my patio full of
fuchsias. The comment I got most was, "Are those antiques?" *smirk, nod,
nod*

[more cool adapted finds clipped]

The oddest "salvage" I ever obtained for the garden was last year at a
yard sale out in the middle of bloody nowhere. There were signs along a
five mile stretch of road that all said "Yard Sale! Chinese Junk!" I
figured by Chinese junk they meant all sorts of junk from China & the
sellers didn't know it was a pun, but it was amusing to think it might be
an actual ship. Well, it WAS an actual ship. Some guy had salvaged a
half-rotted century-old junk & was taking it all to pieces, selling bits
of decorations & wood sections & brass fittings for next to nothing. We
got the masthead's Fu dog, & we got the ship's "eyes" (big wooden eyes;
junks had to be able to see doncha know); odd brass fittings & wooden
pullies & nobs & hooks; a heavy cabinet door with a carved phoenix. Only
yesterday we fixed up some of the junk's short metal-capped wooden posts
to serve as hose-guards. The Fu dog needs some little restoration before
we can attach it to the top of the garage, & our chum Long says he'll help
us get it mounted when its ready.

-paghat the ratgirl

--
"Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher.
"Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature.
-from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers"
See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/