Asking the world what color a special garden gate should be

Crowdsourcing aspects of a garden is an enlightening experience. 

Last weekend I picked up the gate for the vegetable garden. This is a big deal in this very lengthy project. I am an admirer of garden gates. The best ones ooze charm, teasing you to just dare to walk through them. 

But in my garden, which is, for better or worse, quite open, there are no opportunities for gates, which by default divide an area. So I did what any perfectly not-at-all sane gardener would do and I built a garden that needs a gate. I’m kidding, of course. I totally wanted a place to grow some vegetables too.

Long story short, I had what I consider to be my dream garden gate built. I realize that a custom garden gate sounds, well, unnecessary, but it’s entirely possible I’m only going to get one garden gate in my entire life. There’s no way I’m going for the big-box special.

I picked it up on Saturday and by the time the opening credits of “Saturday Night Live” were rolling I had nearly a dozen very rough Photoshop mockups of the gate painted or stained in a variety of colors up on Instagram and Facebook seeking input.

And boy did I get it. There wasn’t a single option that didn’t get a vote, although bright yellow probably got the least votes, just because I said that I’ll be planting apricot climbing roses on the arbor and I guessing people had a hard time pictures that combination, and I felt the same way.

There were a lot of people who liked the idea of keeping the beautiful cedar natural and just clear coating it. In theory I like that too, but I’m not sure I can pass up an opportunity to bring a fun color into the garden. Such opportunities don’t present themselves that often and, let’s be honest, I’m not known for my restraint.

And there were suggestions for colors I hadn’t even thought of: red (love red but not for this), maroon (nope), purple (definitely no; I’m not a purple girl), teal (kind of love it) and even art pieces with vines and flowers on them, which I’m not remotely talented enough to pull off myself. 

Some people brought up points I hadn’t thought of that were quite valid, and others made me look at an option in a completely different way. 

So what color is this dream gate going to be? I don’t know for sure, but I have it narrowed down to a general color category. And nope, I’m not telling just yet. But I know this: I don’t think there’s a bad option. If hundreds of people can vote and there’s not a clear consensus, I’m pretty confident whatever I pick will be OK. 

And if it’s not, one of you can come over and change the color for me.