(5) Courtesy Jennifer Tiffany
A Garden Grows in Corning
Pixie Moss Meadows Celebrates Garden Whimsy in Small Packages By Karey Solomon
W
hile many people might look sadly at a defunct portable radio, or wonder what to serve in an over-large teacup, Jennifer Tiffany sees these and more as intriguing containers for small, whimsical gardens. She specializes in succulents, a species of plants with a lot of variety in color, texture, and leaf size. Paired with interesting ceramic accents, stones, seashells, and almost always with a pixie, fairy, or gnome—or, alternatively, a baby Yoda—Jennifer’s mini-gardens are each their own small world, a desktop retreat with a story to tell. Pixie Moss Meadows, at 65 East Market Street, Corning, is where the magic happens. Opened this year, it’s a green oasis complete with the gentle sounds of a tall, trickling fountain, rows and rows of happy plants, and baskets of the colorful 16
semi-precious stones she uses to decorate her scenes. “I can create a garden in just about anything,” Jennifer says. “I’ve even used hollowed out logs.” And shoes, antique orphan drawers, ceramic skulls. She even creates such tiny gardens, nestled in containers like antique canning jars, that she has to use tweezers to carefully maneuver everything into place. Here in the store are also garden accessories she’s spent time researching and sourcing, like quirky spoon plant picks with sayings like, “I wet my plants,” and “Grow, damn it!” For those who feel uncertain about their gardening skills, there are little wooden stakes to stick in your plants that say things like “A little thirsty over here!” as a reminder to people who forget to water, or “My next victim,” for those who refuse
to be reminded. The shop’s name, and the presence of small, magical creatures ornamenting most gardens is reminiscent of the stories Jennifer’s grandmother told her on childhood walks. “She told me to keep my eyes out for pixies and gnomes,” she says now. She remembered her grandmother when she chose the name for her business. “I needed a mystical name—I believe the pixies gave it to me!” she says. Jennifer’s impetus for Pixie Moss Meadows began as a stay-at-home mom wanting a creative outlet. Friends and family who saw her creations asked her to make little gardens for them as well. “I loved succulents because they were the first sort of plant I didn’t kill,” she laughs. She took online classes and spent years sourcing accessories. She propagates her succulents in
