I could pound the u nails on the flat side of the stakes near the top. Duh. I have all the stuff for that. But I'll wait to see if anyone else comes up with a better idea because the stakes won't go as deep as rebar would.

If I use the u nails and stakes, what would I use to tie them to the bottom of the hatrack with? The only thing I have are heavy nylon cord and some wire I wound off some chicken wire I bought, was that a job!

Why not use zip ties (wire ties) to tie it off? I'm married to a computer geek so many things in my garden are held together with them!

Post pics!

~~Mimi

How stable would it be if you turned it upside down and buried parts of it? I plan on doing this with my broken wooden coat rack. Im going to use mine as a pole for holding a birdhouse. I have to get the birdhouse built first.

If the center circle is large enough, could you fit a heavy pot in it and fill with rocks to give it more weight? possibly put the rebar through a heavy plastic pot in that circle and then fill with rocks. Might hold it enough to use the u nails easier too. It would not be dead steady but might help to hold in place.

Mimi, that would work, would use the longer ones and two.

adellabedella, now that is a creative idea. As it is, it would not be stable at all, but if I drove some rebar (assumeing I coul find some the right diameter) into the ground, I'd have about 3-1/2 inches sticking up and a lot more in the ground to stabilize it. The knobs come off the top and it is hollow, especially combined with some weight somewhere to help stabilize it more. I would like to see your birdhouse when you get it built, and the idea of a wooden coatrack appeals to me. I want to try some coatracks to suspend my shop lights on and asked the guy at the yard sale where he got his. Big Lots. So I'll check there next time I'm out that way.

I was thinking of moving the place where I feed the birds to the top of that, would have to find the right kind os platform or dish that wouldn't look tacky, that's if I keep it oriented the way it is.

Graham Thomas is THE rose I want for it, if I get lucky that it will climb high enough.

candleberry, it would be neat if I could stick a pot in the botton, but that part sticking down would not work unless I find one shallow enough. Are you talking about the top or the bottom for the planter? Some kind of planter like you said in the top would be really neat, then I'll have to keep feeding the birds where I am or find something else. Easy enough to do.

Thanks everybody, you are the greatest! I thought I was crazy for dragging another thing home, but I'm having a hard time improvising trellises and liked the curvy lines of it even though it is a very cheaply constructed piece which may not hold up very long.

Now I want a raised round bed with that as the centerpiece. Oh me. I'll have to do that myself because I'm already paying a landscaper for a bigger project I can't do.

I think using it upside down like Adellabedella said would look great and work better. It would hide what it really is, give you something to bury in the ground for more stability, and the curvy pretty part would be at the top.

I can just see a pot in the middle with a plant flowing out--and your vines or rose climbing up from the bottom. It could really be a gorgeous centerpiece for you round bed.

It also looks like it could be taken apart if you wanted to use it as two smaller pieces too.

Lots of possibilities here. Good find. Luvs

OK, it's going upside down. Who woulda thunk it? Not me, and I didn't like the idea at first but now I do a lot with the prettier curves on top. Oh yes, it comes apart, just pick up the top and off it comes into two sections. But I need it the way it is if I'm going to grow a rose on it, it's a shrub rose that grows 5 to 8 feet.

But I was bad, found and ordered a Graham Thomas for this and one other rose to complete the scheme on the other side (if I'm going to pay for shipping, might as well make it worth the cost), and that is going to have to be it for now, lucky I found the Graham.

Now how do I build the round bed? I don't like railroad ties (don't have a big enough patch to make them round), would prefer bricks but don't have enough and don't know how to mortar them, will not have those landscaping stones in my yard (may make an exception for some colored cement textured blocks in a tan for making a tier on the back terrace, and I have a bunch of glass blocks but don't want to mess with cementing them or don't relish the glare which might annoy people. So what is left? Boards? I do have some old panelling in the basement that is solid wood and thicker than most and if there is enough left, could double it for strength.

I COULD make a sort of a curvy triangular bed, think I might like that better, that follows the contours of the spot. I'll post photo below where I propose to put it, hope it will get enough sun; the neighbor's tree shades it in the afternoon but it faces south.

So now what? Topsoil will be hard work hauling from my car but not something I have to figure out how to do.

I had the utility company come up and mark where I'm not supposed to dig, then the girl told me the gas line is so hard, I can't hurt it, so I propose to stick it right around the orange and yellow flags, in that area.

{{gwi:136767}}

because my sweet peas didn't seem to like a brassy wine rack last year. I'd like to incorporate that somehow, too, with flowers poking through the holes, but can't figure out the right plant to do that.

I just joined, and this is my first post. I think it would look great upside down with a gazing ball (BB) on top. It doesn't look like a ball would fit with the rack right side up, but if it did that would help anchor it.

I have one of those in my shed. Now I have to use mine. A short piece of rebar bent into a U shape and hammered over the metal will work. Remember you are making it top heavy upside down. A BB will fit into the circle if you need weight also. If you do it upside down, take off the curlys and the brass cap. Drive a metal pole just smaller than it and put the rack over the pole.

You can take GEII and put in a plastic bottle lid and then put the lid on the places missing the buttons and take off the lid a little bit later and it will be stopped up But if you take off the top curlies, you will have enough and can secure them with GEII. Man I have to get mine out and play with it...

Make a circle bed by using a stick in the middle and a string to get it round. put a hose out to mark it and dig. Edge: You can get the black plastic to use as an edger. Do not mator the bricks, put them in soldier style. Use china plates to make it more victorian like the hat rack. Use glass bottles if you have a lot. June

june, I do not like to hurt your feelings, but I just don't like gazing balls. If the neighbor's have it, I don't want it. But, if there was some way I could decorate a ball that would not look tacky, now that would be interesting. The time. Oh I've got so much going, but there have been threads where people did neat things to balls here. And keep on posting! And welcome. I'm kind of a newbie, too, but have participated in so many threads because I've learned so much, gotten so many neat ideas, and it's just so enjoyable to be part of a forum where people are generaly so pleasant to each other.

twomonths, now we are cooking with gas. But I don't understand soldier style. Is there a photo somewhere? I've never done anything with bricks except to use them for weights. Thanks for telling me how to do the circle, although I may go for the curvy other, could start with a circle though and have an old hose in the basement. You have a rack, too! Cool. I'd like to see what you do with yours.

I guess I'm feeling a little frantic at this point knowing what's left to be done. When it gets hot, I can't work outside any more especially when it's humid. I can weed, do minor maintenance and water. That's it. But we do get cool breaks.

I really appreciate, can't tell you how much, all your suggestions. I thought maybe I'd gone too far with that rack, but now I think it might be positively elegant! Think I'll leave it brass for now . . .and find some of that GEII or whatever that is. Plumbers putty came to mind. So did duct tape, couldn't live without the stuff lol. Maybe I could stick some pretty glass marbles on there. And I've got plenty of victorian dishes . . .