I have a couple of concrete statues around that stay where they are (heavy). Also a few resin statues scattered around. The weather around here hasn't bothered them at all. And yes it gets to 5 degrees around here at least 2 or 3 times a year.

The only thing that I wouldn't recommend is ceramics of any kind. They'll shatter when it gets too cold. Otherwise, I've had resin, plastic, concrete and metal and they've all held up pretty well.

My resin ones do fine, and my glass orbs have been fine. The only ones I've ever lost were some "soft" ceramics I bought at a local hobby store. They crumbled to pieces over the winter. I have no idea what material they were made of, but they were supposed to resemble small, Roman urns and they were unglazed.

The problem with anything ceramic is that it is porous. Water gets into the ceramic and when it freezes bursts the ceramics apart as it expands. Even glazed ceramics usually have spots on the bottom where there is no glaze because of the firing process. They soak up water like a sponge and then it freezes and breaks apart. Cement is porous too but it will hold up in freezing weather for some reason. Although I do think over time it will eventually crack. Terracotta pots will also freeze and shatter which is why I no longer buy them. Anything that is not porous should do fine outside all winter.

Agree with seil and flaurabunda. On statues and pots made of concrete, resin, etc we've done fine. The only problem we've had with cement is fountains where we didn't seal the surface and allowed water to collect in the basin and freeze--this strains the material and they'll eventually crack over 4-5 years. If you get something concrete that can trap water, like a fountain, either seal the surface or open the drainage plug at end of season. The ones where we've left them like that are still in operation and have no cracks.

Ceramics that are high fired are not porous. It's just that a lot of ceramic pieces for sale are not high fired.

I don't have good luck with the resin ones, but I suspect it's our summer heat. They just don't hold up well.

I take all my gee-gaws inside the shed for the winter. I do leave out some huge ceramic pots that are too huge to move but I make sure there is absolutely there is no soil left inside and there is a drain hole where water can escape if it rains or the snow melts. It's the action of water freezing and thawing that causes terracotta and ceramics to crack.

I hope this is not construde as an attempt to hijack this post but the subject made me wonder:

Where does everyone purchase your resin statuary? I purchased three gems from Target when they still had a garden area, but I haven't found a suitable source replacement since.

To be on the safe side, I bring the solar-powered fountain inside--or rather, my son does (too heavy for me). I think freezing temps would damage the solar panel.

The other items are smaller--I have no idea what they are made out of, but they were intended for garden use. I don't get around to moving them into the unheated garage until really, really cold weather approaches--which usually begins towards the end of January. I don't know that they need to be protected in the garage, but I start worrying--so I move them. However, before I get around to that, they have gone through a couple months of temps in the freezing category at night and sometimes during the day--so they might be tougher than I give them credit for.

Kate

Eventually resin and plastics will get brittle and break, more from the UV exposure than the cold. I do take in all fountains and small decorations.

I appreciate all of your comments and it sounds like resin will hold up but to be on the safe side, they should be stored inside for my northern Michigan winter. Kublakhan, I came across a web site at www.designtoscano.com that has a whole bunch of neat statues on it. I have an eight foot Corinthian pillar in one garden and I am thinking I might put a resin gargoyle on the top to look down at visitors, like maybe the Florentine gargoyle on the web site, but that also means I have to climb a ladder twice a year to wrestle the thing up and down as the seasons change. But as a word of caution, I have never dealt with these Toscano people so I cannot endorse their products or service.

Jim,
That is EXACTLY where we get all of our statues. Best looking and best prices, IMO.

I have a Venus statue that's just under 2 feet tall that I got for less than $40; pretty good bargain considering the detail in it.

I have dealt with them and they were very, very nice. Their warehouse is in Chicagoland and twice yearly they have a warehouse sale....but you have to show up to get the goodies.

Thanks Jim! The site was EXACTLY what I was thinking about.

Now my 2cents: I have both in balmy SF, so I don't know about snow, but I will tell you that resin statuary is a hell of lot easier to move indoors when I hurricane threatens than a concrete statue. On the other hand, concrete statues can take a fall (soggie ground=easy fall for heavy concrete) where some of resin features have lost fingers over similar falls. Just a thought.

Flaurabunda can you send me the details on the warehouse sale? I've got no problem getting to Chicago but I've never seen anything about the sale.

As for my garden stuff, I bring it all in over the winter. The only thing that stays out is my copper birdbath. One of my favorite garden statues is a resin that looks like copper. There's a bunch of fairy ones and the link is one I have in my garden (although I bought it from one of my local nurseries).

Here is a link that might be useful: Garden fairy