Hare & Rabbit Garden Ornaments: The Complete Buying Guide

The Large March Hares Ornament Set on a south-facing Cotswold gravel path, two boxing hares mid-spring courtship, is the picture that pulls most British gardeners into the hare and rabbit theme. The two subjects sit close in the catalogue, share most of the same placement principles, and complement each other in a way few other pairs do. Hares carry the older folkloric weight: Eostre, the Three Hares motif, the moon-gazing pose. Rabbits carry the gentler domestic register: Beatrix Potter, kitchen-garden raids, soft naturalistic planting. This guide covers both, names six real pieces, and lays out how to style the theme without overcrowding the border.

Defining the hare look

Hares and rabbits sit at slightly different points on the same visual axis. A hare is leaner, taller, longer in the ear, more architectural in the pose. A rabbit is rounder, lower, softer in profile. Used together in one garden, they can read as a single coherent theme if the finish tones are kept close and the scales are stepped (one anchor, two or three companions).

What pulls these pieces together

Both subjects sit well in long grass, both pair with wildflowers, both reference the British countryside in a way that suits cottage and naturalistic planting. The shared visual cue is the soft mammal silhouette: ears, haunches, the alert posture or the curled-up pose. Hares lean toward symbolic and contemplative readings (moon-gazing, March-boxing). Rabbits lean toward narrative and gentle readings (curled, alert, nibbling). A garden that takes both reads as fuller than one that takes only one.

Common materials and finishes

Cast resin in a natural brown or weathered-stone finish is the dominant form, light enough to reposition by hand and crisp on painted detail. Reconstituted cast stone gives the heavier, more "rooted" register that suits established country plots, and develops a soft lichen patina over two winters in a damp position. Bronze-effect painted finish on cast resin gives the aged metallic register that suits formal gravel paths and Cotswold stone walls without the cost, weight, or theft risk of actual bronze. All three are rated for British winters.

Where the theme works in a British garden

Cottage gardens, wildflower-meadow plots, edges of vegetable patches, under fruit trees, beside gravel paths through soft planting. The theme reads poorly in clipped formal gardens and on modern paved patios with strong geometric lines, where the soft mammal silhouettes can look marooned. South-facing borders work for visibility but fade painted finishes faster than dappled shade. Wildflower verges and rough-grass edges are the natural home of the theme.

Picks across the theme

Below are six real pieces drawn from the linked collections, weighted to give a clear sense of scale across the theme. Prices fluctuate with seasonal promotions, so always check the live product page for the current figure.

Statement pieces

The Large Moon-Gazing Hares Ornament Set sits at the top of the catalogue for the hare theme. Two full-scale hares back-to-back, the contemplative moon-gazing pose, designed as a focal point in a deep border or against a wall. The Large March Hares Ornament Set is the boxing pair, the spring courtship caught mid-clash, an anchor piece for a path edge or a lawn corner. Both work as the single statement in a hare-led planting.

Mid-scale companions

The Medium Bronze Moon-Gazing Hares Ornament Set is the bronze-effect version of the moon-gazing pair, painted on cast resin and light enough to reposition through the season. It sits comfortably as a secondary piece beside a larger statement hare, or as a standalone anchor in a smaller plot. Mid-scale rabbit pieces from the rabbit garden ornaments collection (curled rabbits, alert nibbling rabbits) fill the middle ground between a statement hare and a small accent.

Smaller accents

Single small hares (15 to 25cm) and small rabbits suit a border edge, a windowsill, the base of a path obelisk, or a herb patch. They read as the punctuation in a hare-themed corner rather than the headline. Look at the smaller pieces in the hare garden ornaments collection for the current under-£40 selection, and at the rabbit collection for the equivalent rabbit accents. A single small alert rabbit at the foot of a vegetable patch reads as if it has just sat up from a raid.

Styling the hare look

Three rules carry most of the work: one statement, two or three companions, no more than five total in a single sight-line. Beyond five pieces in a single view the theme reads as cluttered, regardless of how well each piece is placed.

Grouping pieces

One anchor piece (60cm+ statement hare or paired set) holds the eye. Two or three smaller pieces (15 to 40cm) accent the surrounding planting at different distances from the anchor. Stagger heights so the eye moves through the group rather than scanning a flat row. Avoid placing companions in straight lines; the natural reading is asymmetric, mimicking how hares and rabbits would actually be distributed in a real meadow.

Planting choices

Long grass, ox-eye daisies, cornflowers, cow parsley, foxgloves, soft-textured perennials. Avoid hard architectural plants (yuccas, phormiums) near hare and rabbit figures because the visual register clashes. Apple, crab apple, and hawthorn trees overhead complete the cottage register. For a rabbit at the edge of a vegetable patch, frame with lettuces, carrots in lacy foliage, or trailing nasturtiums.

Lighting and ground cover

Low-level path lighting beside a moon-gazing hare picks up the upturned profile and catches the metallic finish on a bronze-effect piece. Avoid uplighters from below, which flatten the silhouette. Ground cover at the base of the figures (creeping thyme, ajuga, low geraniums) settles the piece into the planting rather than leaving it perched on bare earth. For lichen ageing on reconstituted-stone pieces, a damp shaded spot under a hedge gives the fastest patina.

Frequently asked questions

Can I mix materials within the hare theme?

Yes. Cast resin and reconstituted cast stone sit together comfortably if the finish tones match (both weathered, or both crisp). Mixing a freshly painted resin hare with a heavily lichened stone hare can read as mismatched until the resin softens through a season. Bronze-effect painted resin sits well alongside natural-brown resin if both have a similar weathered register.

What scale works for a hare-themed corner?

One statement piece (60cm and above) anchors the corner, two or three smaller pieces (15 to 40cm) accent the surrounding planting. More than five pieces in a single sight-line reads as cluttered. The Large Moon-Gazing Hares pair counts as one anchor for this purpose because the back-to-back pose reads as a single unit.

Are hare garden statues weatherproof?

Yes for cast resin and reconstituted cast stone, both rated for British winters and designed to stay outside year-round. Painted finishes hold their colour longer in dappled shade than in full south-facing sun. Reconstituted stone develops a soft lichen patina over two winters in a damp position, which most owners want.

Do you deliver across the UK?

Free UK delivery on orders over £50, with most pieces despatched within 3 to 5 working days. Larger reconstituted-stone hare pairs above 25kg ship on a pallet service with a slightly longer lead time, shown on the product page at purchase. Christmas cut-off dates are published on the site each November.