My garden totems protect the outdoor spaces they grow amidst. Their organic forms borrow from familiar pods, flowers, leaves, or parts of plants. They have small footprints with a quiet, yet large impact.  Each one has a "crowning glory" which completes the story of that particular totem. Each piece is handmade. All of my totems  are winter hardy for zones 7 or warmer. My Garden Totems enjoy living indoors and on patios, too.

 Garden Totems

Primitiva Pottery and Tile's award winning, whimsical garden totems were intended to watch over the garden. Each segments can also symbolize relevant stories for the individual for whom I custom design. These totems are the most elaborate of the three types I make, often using over 20 segments and disks. 

 Atop each totem is it's "crowning glory" like no other: carnivorous plants, nesting fantastical birds (must have fantastical eggs), bird houses, and seed pods with a twist of science fiction adorn them. With their 'crowns,' each totem takes on its whimsical personality.

A single garden totem creates quite an impact in the garden.  In the winter it stands alone in the garden providing color during hibernation of perennials. Once spring arrives, the garden totem still makes a statement without stealing the show from the plants surrounding them. The totems are stunning in a group. A group of them evokes the whimsical primeval forest. If placed close to one another, I suggest varying their heights and leaving some without crowning glories. 

The whimsical garden totems are made of terracotta clay with some porcelain. The segments and disks are combinations of guava, raspberry, papaya, wisteria, turquoise, and kiwi inspired colors.  

  Bamboo Totems

The bamboo totems are the simplest and most subtle form of my totems. They are truest to my initial concept. They are composed of white stoneware clay glazed in light coats of muted earthen sand colors in satin finishes. They can be composed to any height, but they tend to be shorter than the whimsical totems at three to five feet. They look best in clusters of at least three and at least three different colors.

The bamboo totems are easy to install with a rebar post, pvc pipe, metal conduit pipe, and even bamboo stakes.

  Sprouts or Mini-Totems

My my recent totems are sprouts meant to nestle in pots or amidst plants in the garden. They are as colorful as my full-grown garden totems, and who knows if a 12 to 18 inch sprout might grow taller!

© 2011 Maria P. P. Root, all rights reserved.