Bottle Tree

A bottle tree is pure magic. It’s garden art, really, even in its most rustic forms. Bottles of all shapes, sizes and colors slide neck down over the limbs of a dead tree branch or a bundle of sticks tied together.

Light catches through the glass, and the old timers say that people would place bottle trees outside their bedroom windows to keep bad spirits from entering their dreams. The spirits would be fascinated by the bottles and would fly inside only to be trapped. In the morning light, the sun would cause the spirits to vanish.

Now you can bring this charming Southern tradition to your garden with this whimsical bottle tree by Mississippi artist Stephanie Dwyer.

Stephanie is offering her “Katrina” design which is 5′ tall and uses high-quality metal from the Southern U.S. instead of rebar. These handcrafted, sculptural bottle trees represent a rich cultural history and are an artistic evolution of an ancient tradition.

Who: Stephanie Dwyer, Mississippi Artist
Where: Ridgeland, Mississippi
Why: The bottle tree tradition rooted itself in the South in the 1700s, arriving from Africa and flourishing in the fertile ground of the Mississippi Delta even today. Placing colorful bottles on the ends of broken limbs is said to keep evil spirits (or maybe just nosy neighbors) away from the home.
You Should Know: So why not sell bottles with the trees? Stephanie says that as an artist, she builds the canvasses for “your” bottle tree art. A bottle tree is an extension of you via the glass you decide to use. Your tree is an extension of your personality and therefore anything you put on your tree makes it especially unique. Take the family for a bottle hunting expedition for the bottle tree. Lots of fun!
Small Stuff: The trees do not include the bottles, only the sculpture on which to place bottles of your choosing. Freight Shipping, approx. $195