Bottle Tree at OSU Botanic Garden, Stillwater, OK - Bottle Sculptures on Waymarking.com

Bottle trees historically protected homes from evil spirits by trapping the spirits in the bottles. It was a practice supposedly brought over from Europeans and Africans to the Americas....evil spirits were mesmerized by the colorful bottles, and got trapped inside because they couldn't find their way out. Sunshine the next day killed the spirit. Glass bottles were first made around 1600 BC; soon after, probably because people heard the weird noises made when wind passes over a bottle, people thought bottles contained spirits (genies, etc.). Blue glass bottles are often found on bottle trees, possibly because blue is a universally calming color. Blue glass is made by adding copper oxides to the glass, but originally cobalt was added (hence the name 'cobalt blue').

The bottle tree at The Botanic Garden at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, OK has been there for many years. Many visitors find it fascinating and a great addition to the garden, but purists (like myself) think it detracts from the surrounding natural beauty. The themes of some of the gardens vary each year, but the bottle tree is a staple. It is usually located near the Green Cottage (a demonstration cottage with passive solar heating, a sand cistern, etc.) and the butterfly gardens.

You can visit this bottle tree, which is part of 100 acres of gardens, arboretums, and low-impact development demonstrations, anytime Monday through Friday between 8am and 5pm, if you want to park near the gardens used in the filming of the weekly television show "Oklahoma Gardening". After hours and on weekends, the north gate is closed and locked, so you can park either at the new south entrance off of Highway 51, or northeast of the north entrance, in a small parking lot across the road. Only service animals are allowed. There is no cost to visit the grounds.

Bottle Placement: Bottle Tree/Sculpture Website: [Web Link]

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