CLEVELAND -- Her garden is gorgeous, but Martha Keeler senses your skepticism. The lush, Italian-themed mini-landscape she designed for this year's Home and Garden Show in Cleveland would be impossible to re-create in your back yard, what with all those exotic-looking plants. And it certainly would be ridiculously expensive, unless you're a garden-loving Donald Trump.

This 50-by-25-foot oasis of color and texture -- meant to evoke an abandoned vineyard in the Tuscan countryside -- won top honors in the extra-large category at the show, which ends tomorrow. The prettiest of its resident plants include 'Mountain Fire' Pieris japonica, Sargenti crab trees and fothergilla, an ornamental shrub that erupts with clusters of tiny white flowers in the spring and copper-colored leaves in the fall. As pretty as they are, they're also tough enough to survive the harsh winters and hot summers of eastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania (hardiness zones 5 and 6).

"It has an Italian feel, but the plants would all work in this area," said Ms. Keeler of Kanary's Landscaping of Sheffield, Ohio.

She and Kevin Bublenic started designing the garden in October, then spent eight 14-hour days working with a six-person crew to install it. Of course, many of this showpiece's 1,000 perennials, trees and shrubs were "forced" so they would bloom in time for the show, held in the I-X Center near the airport. And they're all packed a little tighter together than normal to achieve the look of maturity. But your local garden center should stock most of the garden's colorful ingredients, including the grapevine that wisps its way around the eye-catching medley of astilbe, coral bells, yellow primrose and crispi cypress. Or you can simply buy the actual plants tomorrow at the show's annual closing night plant sale from 7 to 8 p.m.

As for the rustic outbuilding in the center, which was handcrafted of old barn wood and holds a pizza oven, well, you'll have to track one of those down yourself. Ditto with the weathered wine barrels and antique wine press that Ms. Keeler got from a retired vintner.

So how much would it cost to re-create it in your back yard?

About $100,000 to build from scratch, said owner Rich Kanary.

Connelly Landscaping's tribute to the Old Country, which captured the show's Founder's Award for peer judging, is a bit more elegant. More of an outdoor room than a garden, it features a sandstone patio sheltered by a rough-hewn cedar pergola with a tiled bar area underneath and a walkway leading to a small reflecting pond. It's landscaped with a variety of traditional "old-school" plants: English ivy, boxwood and holly, azalea, and Japanese yew. Total cost to replicate: about $50,000, thanks to all those wood columns.

"We wanted to add a little Italian flair to a very functional outdoor living space," said designer Mike Walters, who spent seven days installing it with the help of six people. That means nothing high-maintenance, or species that wouldn't survive a cold snap.

Jay Schwartz of J and K Landscaping & Excavating in Columbia Station, Ohio, who designed the first-place small garden, used a stone grotto topped by a small patio as a focal point, because in Italy, "that's where you'd go to cool off during the summer." Landscaped with magnolia, honey locust, feathery astilbe, rhododendron and azalea, it also contains a large stone fireplace in the corner.

To visually announce the show's theme of "Bella Italia," attendees are greeted by a 12,000-square-foot Renaissance-style entry garden that includes a large fountain that sprays into a reflecting pool, an exposed aggregate walkway, and granite statuaries. Framed by 32 towering cypress trees shipped in from Oregon, the manicured landscape boasts more than 2,000 sweet-smelling hyacinth and cyclamen in a rainbow of hues.

Fabulous as they may be, however, the event isn't all about the gardens. Living up to its reputation as one the largest home shows in the country, the show -- which is spread out over 20 acres -- also features more home improvement and design items than you can shake a tape measure at. Name it, and you can probably see (and get prices for) whatever you hope to add to your home this year: hot tubs, sheds, organizing devices, fencing, gazebos and decks. In all, there are some 900 vendors in more than 2,500 booths.

Attendees can also take in live Italian entertainment, attend a variety of seminars on gardening, interior design and home improvement at three different stages, and hone their culinary skills at the cooking stage. (For stage schedules, visit www.homeandflower.com). Or, stop by the design center near the "Boulevard of Homes" for a free home-design consult.

The show also boasts a number of "real" houses from which to gather decorating ideas. The largest is a 2,000-square-foot, two-bedroom chalet-style home from Marine City Sales that features a two-story living room and first-floor master suite. It's priced at $133,000, or $153,673 with the show upgrades. (Sadly, you only get to traipse through the first floor.)

A bit more interesting -- if you enjoy the water, that is -- are the two "floating" homes next door. Reminiscent of a really, really nice tugboat, both feature two decent-sized bedrooms, a cherry kitchen with stainless-steel appliances and granite countertops, and second-floor game rooms that open onto a large deck. But there is a catch. To own one, you'll have to agree to park it in one of the 66 boat slips at Coastal Marine II near Port Clinton, Ohio, along the Lake Erie shoreline. Both are being sold by Coastal Floating Homes for about $185,000, or about $210,000 with upgrades.

More inspiration can be found in the "Inside & Out" designer showcase, which features eight rooms with eight unique decorating styles.

There's also the occasional oddity, such as the Sugar Glider Connection booth near the east entrance, where some sort of big-eyed marsupials (are they chipmunks or flying squirrels?) were being hawked for $225 a piece, or $425 a pair. How that's related to homes or gardens is anyone's guess.