Did you know that people are still using railroad ties for all sorts of decorative and functional purposes throughout their landscapes? You didn't? Well, where have you been? Railroad ties are used by landscape contractors as a main design component of landscaping both homes and businesses. The use of railroad ties make work easier for grounds maintenance.

Before we talk about all great things you can do with railroad ties let's talk about how easy and inexpensive they are to use when compared to various brick and block structures. The nicest thing about railroad ties is ease with which they can be used. It requires much less skill to construct a retaining wall of ties than one of block. For one thing you don't have to be overly concerned about perfectly straight lines. While railroad ties may cost as much as brick or block per square foot to purchase they cost only 1/4th time in labor to install. Consider how much money that could save, especially if you have to subcontract out brick or block work to a mason.

Creative uses of railroad ties are limited only by your imagination. They can be stacked horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. They can be staggered front to back or top to bottom. They can border lawns as a mowing strip or set off ground cover from gravel beds. They can be used as risers for stairs or as terraces on a slope. -

How about a walkway or driveway? How about a fence? Stand them upright and spaced 3" to 6" apart. Or, stand them upright on a diagonal so that from one angle they appear to be a solid wall but from another afford a view. Cut them into 2 foot lengths and create a basket weave walkway. Why stop there? How about a jumbled collection of short sections stacked amongst some boulders or to frame a flower bed? Have a steep hill that's slowly washing away? Terrace it with a series of short retaining walls. Tired of boring expanse of iceplant on a slope? Break it up with groupings of railroad ties.

But a little something extra is not always a good thing.

Flash back a few weeks. I was assembling a dresser for my daughter. One by one, I pulled wood panels from box. I pulled out a bag of bits and pieces, which was attached to another, which was attached to another, which was attached to another.

I held up chain of bags to inspect. There were screws and bolts and dowels and nails and an assortment of metal and plastic bits for which no name exists.

I set about banging bits into boards, sliding bits into boards, screwing bits into boards, snapping bits into boards. By time I reached step 439 of instructions, I was finally ready to connect two panels (the bottom and one of sides).

But wait. What's this semi-white plastic half-moon piece? And what about this black plastic tube no more than an inch long? Where do these mystery pieces go?

I reread parts inventory – every chapter of it – in English, French and Spanish. I took a magnifying glass to every page of pictograms. But not a trace of either mystery piece. What should I do? I could not just throw them away. What if I discover next week that I really need them?

That's when I remembered "Spare Parts Gremlins". These devious creatures gleefully toss spare parts in where they will most confuse us.