Reiman Gardens: Home to the World’s Largest Concrete Garden Gnome

Earlier this month when I was in Des Moines on business, I had a few hours to spare the day I arrived. I drove 35 minutes north of my hotel to Reiman Gardens, located on the campus of Iowa State University in Ames. The gardens are beautiful in their own right, but I went there specifically to see Elwood, the world’s largest concrete garden gnome! He’s tucked away in a quiet back corner of the garden in a serene space surrounded by trees. Elwood has been a resident of Reiman Gardens since the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day when he debuted as part of their 2010 theme “A Celebration of Garden Ornamentation.” He was sculpted in Wisconsin by Andy and Connie Kautza. The giant gnome stands 15 feet tall and weighs 3500 pounds. He has such a sweet expression and is wearing the traditional red pointy hat, black boots, and blue belted coat as many gnomes do. He’s clutching a yellow flower and a garden trowel.

World’s Largest Gnome is surprisingly a hotly contested title. When Elwood was constructed, he was thought to be the world’s largest gnome and was built with the Guinness World Record in mind, to exceed the previous title holder, 13.5 foot tall Gnome Chomsky. This gnome, located on Kelder’s Farm on a miniature golf course in Kerhonkson, New York, was constructed in 2006. However, before Elwood even arrived at his final destination in Iowa, an 18 foot gnome built in 2009 was discovered in Nowa Sol, Poland – and he now has an equally tall gnome lady friend. Not to be outdone, a 25 foot gnome in Nanoose Bay, Canada named Howard was officially measured for the record shortly thereafter despite being constructed all the way back in 1998. Since the Polish gnome is made of fiberglass and the Canadian gnome is made of scrap metal and other materials, Reiman Gardens’ Elwood is still officially the World’s Largest Concrete Garden Gnome and America’s Largest Gnome.

It was a sweltering day in the 90s when I visited, so I made my way quickly through the rest of the gardens after spending a while appreciating Elwood. Sweat was running into my eyes and it was so bright I had no idea if any of my photographs turned out until later when I was back inside, but I did manage to get a few good photos.

The butterfly wing of Reiman Gardens is just off to the side of the entrance pavilion and has dozens of species of hundreds of butterflies, both native and exotic. The glass building is even shaped like a butterfly. I was impressed with how many butterflies were fluttering around. Another glass building at the back of the pavilion, Hughes Conservatory, had a large collection of tropical plants.

I also stopped in the gift shop, where hundreds of garden gnomes, fairies, birds, and other nature gifts were for sale. I wanted to take home so many things but was limited to what would fit in my carry on bag, so I bought a tiny gnome with a suitcase to mark my travels, a wooden mushroom bookmark made by a local artist, and stickers and postcards featuring the Reiman Gardens gnome. It was one of the nicest garden gift shops I’ve seen, better than shops I’ve been in for much larger botanical gardens. The gardens are staffed by volunteers and they’re all super friendly and informative. Next time you’re in Iowa, make sure you head to the campus of Iowa State University to see the world’s largest concrete garden gnome!