A dear friend recently gave me an old garden gate. Thank you, friend! It’s been sitting around for a month or two, waiting for inspiration.

Shortly after that, the back broke off this old wood bench. We thought we would have to repair the back, but were in no hurry to do so.

I looked at that bench for weeks, wondering. Sunflowers grow up and drape over the top of the back. More like they lean heavily against the back. But still. The window was quickly closing for doing anything with the bench until fall after the sunflowers were done.

Finally. An idea hit. What about the gate? My honey and I played with the idea, holding it up, problem solving how to make it work. After moving a sunflower elsewhere, he set in 2 short 4×4 posts for anchors. We attached the gate to the anchors and slid the bench into place. I love this garden gate backrest!

If you look a little bit further back, you can see I like gates. In nontraditional ways. It seems I am always bringing them home! I once picked up a gate at a free yard sale in north Seattle (fun with another dear friend). My little “truck” Mazda is game to whatever huge things I decide must come home with me. That gate (unlike the above 2) is in use as a gate into the fenced garden, complete now with an arbor and honeysuckle. It actually opens!

If you’d like to see the “working” gate leading into the fenced garden, go here.

Thanks to friends and helpful honeys!

The snapdragons are in full rioting bloom! Look at the top photo to see the crowding sunflowers. They are ready to take over. As a funny sidenote, the gate now blocks access under the bench. Before this, Monet the cat used the space beneath the bench as an easy way to jump out and attack the dog when she ran past. Poor Ginger! But we watched her last night snaking through the sunflowers to go under the bench. The confusion on her face when she was cut off by the gate was hysterical.

Do you have any gates in your garden? Working or decorative?