Just a few questions as the introduction for today’s post.
What do you know about gnomes? How are they different to dwarves? Elves? Goblins? Pixies? Leprechauns, Boggarts? Or any of the other small folk who live in our imagination and stories…and maybe are out there in real life too if only we knew where to look?
How big are they? Where do they live? What do they do all day long? Why haven’t I ever seen one?
How did they ever get into our gardens? And how did they become such popular garden ornaments?
Well that’s a lot of difficult questions to answer… but in this post I’ll attempt to answer at least some of them…and in the process probably tell you more than you ever wanted to know about the origin of garden gnomes….
Let’s start February with a question. Do gardens have to fit into a particular pattern to be “acceptable” or merit inclusion on the “must-visit” list? There are quite a few people who think they shouldn’t have to and that we’re too hung up on particular notions of culture, beauty, and good taste. They argue that gardens, like art generally, should encompass a much wider range of ideas, styles and materials and not be subject to so much analysis or or always be seen through a traditional lens, or subject to “collective” approval to be successful or interesting.
The Garden History Blog 
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