Add a fountain to the garden and it springs to life gushing, bubbling, splashing with the music of water, cooling the soul. If you've ever stood dreaming while the sprinkler spins, you're already aware of the special qualities water brings to the garden.

It's a small step, really, from a sprinkler to a fountain, and one well worth taking.

Fountains give a garden focus. "The same thing a fireplace does for a living room, a fountain does for a garden," says Gay Estes, a garden historian and lecturer whose interest in fountains has taken her around the world. "People stare at a fountain just as they will with a fire."

Grand public fountains set a good example, but their imposing scale may intimidate gardeners interested in adding a fountain to the backyard. Don't be dismayed, any place there's room for a flowerpot, there's room for a fountain.

Placed right outside the back door, on a garden wall or on a pedestal on a balcony, fountains invite you into the fresh air. The sound of even a small fountain helps block out street noise, and can make the rest of the world seem far away.

An interest in natural landscaping and ponds of reeds, water lilies and fish has brought water back into home gardens. Now the same shops that sell aquatic plants carry fountains, pumps, and miscellaneous supplies for customers who want the water and not the lilies.

All the elements in the garden should express the gardener's style. "A fountain has a personality, and it should be harmonious with the house," Estes says. "It's an extension of your taste."

Every fountain has its own spirit and tempo. Borrow ideas from public fountains and water features in gardens you've seen and read about.

"When you look at public fountains, decide what appeals to you," Estes suggests. "Look at the shape and proportions of the fountain, the height of the water, the shape of it coming up. Gauge the emotion you feel when you look at it."

Tabletop fountains are perfect for a screened porch or balcony, and all you need is an extension cord. Some of the best of these have a sense of humor: a watering can fountain designed by Caliform and Brent Lemons continuously fills itself from a garden spigot, but never overflows.

If a power source isn't available another supplier carries a solar powered fountain, 8" across that floats in a bucket, a pool, or a birdbath, and splashes obligingly when the sun shines.

Most larger fountains are no more trouble than tabletop fountains, and they make a bigger splash in the garden. In garden supply shops and catalogs, you'll see Japanese fountains of wood and bamboo, plump-cheeked cherubs spilling water from shells and urns, tile or terra cotta fountains with a Spanish accent, and abstract designs in bronze or copper.

If you've got your own ideas you can start from scratch with a receptacle, a pump, and an appealing sculptural element. Modern recirculating submersible pumps are inexpensive, energy efficient, and last for years. Easy instructions available at most water garden specialty shops make installing your own small fountain a simple project.