healthy living
A magical little world
Invite the fairies into your home with a garden just for them LEA HANSON
FAIRY GARDEN LOCATION Select a location to take advantage of the natural elements of your garden. Many miniature plants and delicate fairies require protection from the elements and garden travelers. Use your natural landscape and create your fairy garden in the shade of a tree or nestle against hills, rock outcroppings, stumps etc. to protect your fairy gardens from both the elements and wandering feet. You can also create your fairy gardens in flowerpots and raised containers to provide miniature portable fairy gardens that provide great protection. 16
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Use flowerpots, raised terracotta saucers, bowls, garden carts, and virtually any discarded material to create a magical one-of-a-kind fairy garden. FAIRY GARDEN PLANTS Any type of plant, tree, and flower can easily be incorporated into your fairy gardens. Be sure to select plants of your particular gardening environment and zone. You can also include faux miniature bonsai trees and tiny flowers for a touch of beautiful color that doesn’t require any maintenance. FAIRY HOUSES When creating your fairy garden you’ll need some type of fairy house that encourages fairies to make their home. A proper fairy house also provides an out-
let to hide from humans. A fairy house can be any type of miniature dwelling; it can be purchased or created from scratch and throwaway materials. Once you’ve created a home, fill it with tiny fairy garden furniture, miniatures, and garden accessories to create a unique fairy garden in which fairies will love living. Bonser and Fiona’s co-owner, Tracey Traenkle, run a ‘take it off the shelf and try it’ approach. She says, “We encourage people to try many different things to find what’s perfect for their project.” Create magical meandering paths through your fairy gardens with enchanted stones, gravel, and bark. Add a sprinkle of glittery fairy dust to your displays to capture traces of the fairies traveling through your garden. Options are endless for creative minds.
PHOTO BY CHERI SCHONFELD
F
airy Gardens are miniature gardens made to appeal to the whimsical side in gardeners—especially young ones. The miniature gardens are for people who believe fairies are nearby and just waiting for the perfect place to call home. Fairies and other magical wee folk have long been fixtures in fables, myths, and folklore. They are are magical miniature creatures who bring luck, prosperity, and good health to the chosen few whose garden they inhabit. Lora Bonser with Fiona’s Fairy Garden says the process of making a fairy garden is a fun, hands-on experience for all ages. She says, “It’s fun to see how creative everyone in a family can be. Even the littlest kids have the ability to execute a creative task. And they don’t even realize how creative they can be until they walk in the door and start working together on a process such as this.” Fairies are playful, jovial creatures that enjoy a good prank and will frolic about with glee in your garden when you’re not looking. Creating a fairy garden is easier than you think. While the most important element to fairy gardening is to believe in the magic of fairies, there are other details to consider.
Where to learn more
• Fort Collins Nursery (www.fortcollinsnursery.com/workshops/fairy-gardening-classes/) offers fairy garden classes on the third Saturday of each month (except May). • Fiona’s Fairy Garden (http://tra389.wix.com/fionasfairygarden#) in Loveland specializes in tabletop fairy gardens and hosts fairy garden parties. • Gulley Greenhouse & Garden Center in Fort Collins offers materials on fairy garden care (www.gulleygreenhouse.com/pc/Fairy-Garden-Care.pdf). • The Windsor Gardener (www.thewindsorgardener.com/) in Windsor offers resources on fairy gardens.