So many pots ... so little time

In these uncertain times, home and garden is becoming a place of refuge — where people can retreat from the grim news of dwindling dividends and dollars. Even before the stock retreat, designer Randy Ouzts began to notice people were pulling back, spending less and focusing their lives around their homes.

Nesting may have started after 9/11 but the last year has made home the place to be. In these uncertain times, a man's home is indeed his castle.

Based in Gastonia, N.C., Ouzts has carved out a niche for himself with his line of garden décor that ranges from clay containers to wrought iron accessories to elegant tulipieres and English bricks for fresh cut flowers.

His pieces have been featured in the Napa Home & Garden collection and his orchid pots were selected by the New York Botanical Garden for their orchids. His line of products, "In the Garden with Randy Ouzts" is made in Honduras and featured in stores throughout the United States.

"Basically everything I do revolves around the garden," says Ouzts, who owns the cozy "Climbing the Walls" shop in Gastonia. The painted concrete floor and shelves filled with earth-tone colored pots and décor give it a rustic charm.

In the past few years, Ouzts has noticed more and more people working in their yards. Outdoor living areas have become more important as people choose home over travel. He has designed items such as his beehive hanging basket and his twig topiary to dress up patios and outdoor spaces.

And with a growing interest in container gardening, he has come out with a variety of pots in all shapes, sizes and textures. This season Ouzts predicts people will take chances. He looks for people to make bold plant selections, eschewing traditional favorites. And they'll be planting bulbs to come up throughout the gardening season. Other trends? Cutting gardens — flowers that can be snipped and brought inside to enjoy in arrangements — will continue to grow in popularity. Vegetables will be big as people look for ways to save money and people will come up with unique ways to blend what they grow into their existing gardens.

It's all about mixing things up, he says. "You can have tomatoes, peppers and basil in the garden, and it adds texture that you don't expect to see," he said. "It looks great."