How about using them to connect railroad ties to make raised beds or flower beds? Also saw a site where this guy takes railroad spikes & makes knives out of them by forging the end pieces flat. Pound some in the wall of your garden shed to hang rakes, shovels, hoes, & waterhoses. Give some to a hunter to use as "toeholds" for deer stands. Okay, that's not gardening but so what!

Use them as weights on the corners of tarps, or in the bottoms of lightweight planters. Sometimes you may want to train a limb to swing down lower, and a few weights tied to the limb will do the trick. Leave it on through at least one growing season. We did that with an oak to create a swing limb, and it's so graceful. Tie several to the ends of a clothes line and swing them over limbs in trees to stretch a sturdy, removable, clothes line. Use them as exercise weights. Use them as the "unit" weights on a home-made balance scale, and you can weigh your produce, or your kid, on it. (I don't know what one spike weighs, but you could take one to the grocery store and weigh it there. As a last resort, take them to the city and sell them in "junque" shops for $5. Don't laugh -- I've seen them for sale!!

If you want to protect them from rusting put them in a heavy duty zip lock bag first before using them outside.

This sounds fun. I think I'll take a walk along the railroad. They have been doing some work near me, and maybe they threw some away. -- Marie

Sell them to a blacksmith ... you'd be amazed at what they make out of railroad spikes! All kinds of hooks, tools, etc.

I made some beautiful sounding windchimes from the ones my son and S.O. collected when they used to go for walks when he was just a tyke. I tied them at different lengths on a piece of bamboo with dental floss. Can't believe how lovely they sound. You can paint them or leave them natural. B.