Garden Tool Art: Antique Tools as Barn Decor

The spokelike arrangement of antique rakes, spades, and pickaxes on Julie Heinsheimer's barn in Rolling Hills isn't just decorative—it recalls pleasant memories. John Bauman, owner of Palos Verdes Begonia Farm, collected them on Midwest antique trips and displayed them at the farm. When the nursery closed, Bauman offered the collection to Heinsheimer.

"I like having a little piece of local history in my garden," she says. The array also reminds her of Pennsylvania Dutch hex signs painted on barns for good fortune.

Nails pounded into the barn siding (one at tool head, one at handle end), supplemented by wire, secure each tool.