Garden gnomes have always been a curiosity for me. I like them and don’t mind seeing or having a gnome in the garden but how in the world did this tradition get started?

Apparently, the practice of placing statues in gardens started in Rome. These statues weren’t of gnomes, but were instead statures of Priapus, a Greco-Roman fertility god. Since we want our gardens to be fertile, this makes sense.

These statues began to change in the Renaissance as statues of gnomes began to show up in the gardens of the wealthy, symbolizing not only fertility but also laughter and whimsy. Technically, these statues fell into the category known as “grotesques.” Grotesques were the result of a strange mingling of somewhat monster like qualities with a little insight or empathy thrown in for good measure. Characters such as Gollum from the Lord of the Rings, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, and Frankenstein would also fall into the category of grotesques.

Our first instance of describing gnomes as having magical powers came from a Swiss physician, alchemist, lay theologian, and philosopher of the German Renaissance named Paraclesus, who described them as “diminutive figures two spans in height who did not like to mix with humans.” Just fyi, a span is the distance between the tip of the thumb and the tip of the little finger when you hand is outstretched.

Toward the end of the 16^th century, gnomes constructed from wood and porcelain were gaining popularity in European gardens. However, it was in Germany that these garden statues began to be associated with stories and superstitions about gnomes ability to help out around the mines or farms.

While there appears to be some disagreement on this next bit of history, it seems it was a German company that began to produce and sell the first commercial garden gnomes somewhere around 1842. These statues were call Gartenzwerge (garden dwarfs.)

In 1847, a man named Sir Charles Isham, brought 21 terracotta gnomes back to his home in Britain to be placed in the garden of his estate known as Lamport Hall. Eventually, his home was converted to a center for culture and education where the single surviving gnome is still on display. This particular gnome’s name is Lampy and is insured for over one million dollars. That’s a tidy sum for what is considered to be the oldest garden gnome in the world. You can search the internet if you would like to see a photo of Lampy.

Gnomes continued to grow in popularity but then received an incredible boost to the mainstream when the movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was released in the 1930s. I am guessing that many of us can still name all seven dwarfs. Unfortunately, the arrival of World War 2 decreased the production of garden gnomes as the world had other priorities.

Gnome production increased in the 1970s with the creation of various gnomes designed to produce a chuckle or a snicker from the viewer. Apparently, in the 1990s, it was fun to prank someone who had a garden gnome by removing the gnome and photographing it in a different location. After the hilarity died down, the gnomes were hopefully returned to their homes.

Originally, garden gnomes were typically male characters with beards that were usually wearing a red hat and smoking or holding a pipe. Back in the day, most gnomes were about two fee tall, however today you can find a gnome to your liking doing just about anything (some on the salty side if you will) and in a variety of sizes. As a statement to their popularity, in 2008 it was noted that there were over 25 million garden gnomes in Germany.

While it’s hard to imagine why, there was a period of time in which gnomes were banned from gardens of the prestigious Chelsea Flower Show in the United Kingdom. Apparently, they felt like the gnomes detracted from the garden. I can see a garden purist having that view, but seriously, gnomes can be fun, perhaps they were stealing the attention from the flowers.

Garden gnome enthusiasts accused the flower show of elitism and snobbery since garden gnomes were quite popular with the working class at the time. Ultimately, the Chelsea Flower Show backed down and the garden gnome ban was lifted in 2013.

The bottom line is that if you want a gnome in your garden, put a gnome in your garden. Personally, I have a pink flaming planter that might just be enough whimsy for my garden, but if you are in the market for a gnome, there’s a gnome for just about any taste and even some that are somewhat less than tasteful. I gave one of our sons-in-law a garden gnome that is a tyrannosaurus dining on garden gnomes. Like I said, there’s something for everyone. See you in the garden.

You can get answers to all your gardening questions by calling the Tulsa Master Gardeners Help Line at 918-746-3701, dropping by our Diagnostic Center at 4116 E. 15th Street, or by emailing us at mg@tulsamastergardeners.org. Photo: Pixabay