compost for thought

Photographing the freedom lawn contestants gardens/yards is always interesting and gives me lots of ideas. one of the most suprising insights from last years contest is that a compost pile doesnt need to be hidden away . We are used to thinking of the piles as unsightly, but they can be beautiful. The compost piles help us remember that gardening is not a dead end to grow pretty flowers or food, but part of a continuous cycle. The magazine pictures of perfectly manicured gardens with nary a pruner or rake in sight don't tell the real story. For me now , the compost pile , the garden supports made from string and branches, the reuse and recyling of pots and containers, the rain barrels...all the signs that the gardener is conscious of his or her place in the greater schema of nature are becoming what i treasure and admire the most