Franc Hofgarten didn't come from a woodcarver's workshop. He came from the garden. He's a botanical gnome — grown from leaves and stems and the deep roots of Frank Fetch Park — and he wears this distinction like a badge of honor. Where the other gnomes are carved, Franc is cultivated. He shifts with the seasons, blends with the blooms, and disappears entirely into the greenery if you aren't looking carefully enough. More than one visitor has spotted what they thought was an unusual cluster of plants and then done a very satisfying double-take.

Franc enjoys being different, and German Village has always given him good reason to. This neighborhood has spent 150 years making sure people who don't fit the mold feel exactly at home — and Franc, the one gnome in the village who isn't made of wood, fits right in because of it. He spends his days among the flowers and his evenings listening to the park settle into quiet. If the garden looks particularly alive today, there's a good chance Franc is somewhere in the middle of it, blending in beautifully, and thoroughly pleased with himself.