 Hannie's Close Up, S. Africa |
 Claudia's Cafe, WA |
 Tom's Sweet Mugo Pine |
 Jo & Danya's House, WA |
 Mary B's conifer garden, WI |
 Mary B's conifer walk, WI |
 Linda's Wee Cottage, IA |
 Linda's House, IA |
 Linda's Mini Park, IA |
 Linda's wee sanctuary. IA |
 Glenda's Creamy Hemlock, NC |
 Glenda's Corner, NC |
 Glenda's shady side ;-), NC |
 Glenda's Greenball Hemlock, NC |
 Mary's Close Up, IL |
 Mary's House Detail, IL |
 Mary's Orchard, IL |
 Serenity Now! Mary, IL |
 Mary's Snowdrop, IL |
 Mary's Terrarium, IL |
 Brad: Some "garden elements" |
 Usually well-tended moss... |
 Usually consistent in scale... |
 Janice's Fairy Pond, ID |
 Lisa's Mini Garden #1, WA |
Your Miniature Garden Gallery |
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Hannie - Miniature Gardener - South Africa |
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| "We
were in Seattle and visited the garden expo. [NWFGS] Your gardens were
so
beautiful, so I decided to make my own mini garden. I'm sending
you a
photo of my garden."
Hannie found our booth at the 2007 Northwest Flower and Garden Show
here in Seattle. It was a very fun surprise to get the email from her
afterwards to see how she used her minis -
all the way from South Africa too! |
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Jo & Danya - Miniature Gardeners - Monroe, WA |
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Jo
built this gem with the help of her neighbor, Danya. They had
it
planted in the ground last fall, then they raised it up and planted
this box this past spring, 2007. You can see below how they solved the problem by decorating the box with lattice (see next picture) so it would blend in better with the garden that surrounds it. With a box that size it gives you plenty of room to work with and develop your miniature garden. It'll look even better with time as the plantings weave themselves together and the trees get situated. Good job guys! LOVE that house... |
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...After seeing her pictures, I asked about the house, which I think is just darling. Here's what Jo had to say: "Happy to hear you liked the little cottage. That's what we are trying to call the house... my neighbor, Dayna, bought the house for 1$ at a yard sale and used the rocks and an all weather adhesive. Then used an old broom for the roof with heavy waterproof (polyurethane or something). We seem to always add something new - even a Fucshia with a tiny 1/2" bloom (will need to keep pruning so hope to keep it under control). The cottage was out in the freeze this past winter and didn't seem to have any damage..." |
Linda - Miniature Gardener - Iowa |
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| Doesn't it make you
want to shrink down and take a seat like Alice in Wonderland? Notice how Linda has carved the back of the house to fit right onto the bottom of the tree trunk - it really makes it look like the house is built into the tree. A nice effect. She has included the larger perennials within the mini landscape. It seems as if the "little people" had to adapt to living in this forest with the pathways partially overgrown and the jungle all around... |
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If
your miniature garden scene entices you to walk in, and
be in, that wee garden, you have accomplished the magic of
miniature gardening! Nice photo, Linda! Note how she got right down and level with the scene - it's exactly how you would see it if it was a life-size garden - that makes this photo work so well. |
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A lovely shade garden.
you can see the pool to the right of the chairs accented with driftwood
and moss.
A nice big box like this gives you space to make 'garden rooms' and pathways to join them. |
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Glenda - Conifer Collector - NC |
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And yet, another form
of gardening small. Note how well the wee little trees can be
shown off in pots by the variety of colors and shapes in the
trees and the pots. It becomes an eye-stopper because of the sheer number of trees, the variety and the consistency = one plant per pot.
Follow the photos around the deck ;-) Nice collection, eh? |
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I never really considered conifers before I got into the business of miniature gardening - I was a perennial nut actually. But, once you are bitten by the conifer bug, you never really see plants the same again. Your appreciation for the nuances of the varieties grow every time you see a tree or shrub for the first time. Take note of these "jewels of the forest" the next time your out and about, chances are it was there before you were. |
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Uh.... Glenda? Where's the door? [A conifer is tree that bears cones, like Spruce, Cypress or Juniper.] |
Mary - Wardian Cases, Terrariums and Fairy Gardener - Illinois |
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Mary's words are in the quotes:
"...my mini fairy garden has since grown full and lush (Creeping Jenny went wild!), and I've had to trim it back a lot - the Lobelia has finished blooming already . I had so much fun making it, and tried to be resourceful to save some money. The little house was an old birdhouse my sister-in-law was getting rid of at a garage sale, and I made the gazing ball out of a spray-painted anchor bolt with a marble glued on top! I also made the twig arch from some branches in my yard, stripped of leaves, twisted and left to dry for a while." (It is planted in a 24" square box...) |
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"In
the Wild Thyme fairy one, I have since learned that I should have been
pinching this coleus off so it didn't get so tall and leggy - I'm
including an older picture that shows what the coleus looked like when
it was small, looked much better and I need to learn to train them to
stay bushy like that." Yet another take on miniature gardening: you can trick some full size plants into being miniature - Bonsai isn't just for trees! |
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These
terrarium gardens look like a lot of fun. Mary has a nice selection, from sun gardens
- as we can see the cactus in the foreground - to shade gardens. We
know that the covered
ones can only go in shade/indirect light or the plants would
literately bake in the sun.
Mary has a miniature garden business of her own called "Miniature Landscapes by Mary". |
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Heather - Conifer Collector - Marysville, WA |
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Heather just had her yard landscaped when she sent me these photos this past August, 2007. The pot display on the right is part of Heather's conifer collection - and a great way to accent the steps too. A serene looking garden-scape with the natural rocks blending perfectly with the brick. I love the flagstone path... something to try in miniature perhaps? |
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Brad - Fairy Advocate - Maryland |
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"Something I also wanted to tell you about, and I forgot in my initial email, and I wonder if you have noticed these too; naturally in the woods. I have started to develop a list of criteria that they seem to adhere too: - They are usually between 1-4 feet in diameter - They usually have a well-tended moss matting - They usually have several small "garden elements" such as smaller, but proportioned plants, an interesting stone, etc. - They usually have a primary feature - in this area it is often a bonsai-like small mountain laurel - or some other small tree |
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"- There is usually some form of a "shelter", a hollow log, an overhanging rock... somewhere the wee one can hide if it rains. - Everything is usually consistent in scale - They are always very well kept- the plants well cared for and the moss cleared of any debris. - They never photograph well. I have started to notice them a lot when walking in the woods. You might want to keep an eye out for them... I am sure there a many of them in your beautiful rainy neck of the woods. |
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Brad is an father, author,
and runs his own online bookstore called the Authors Bookshop
(www.authorsbookshop.com) and an after school program for inner
city kids. |
"I have attached a photo of the first one I ever noticed. [one above] It is on some friends land, so I have been able to watch it for a couple of years. It doesn't have a shelter, and its a little more cluttered that usual, but it has two really nice mountain laurels, is well scaled, and has a great stump next to it (hard to see in this picture), that the little one could sit atop and gaze over her garden. The second image is closer, [at left] shows more details - you can see some of the accent plants and mosses. You can also see the stump. Anyway, just thought I would share that..." We have seen these patches in the woods but have we really looked at them? Brad criteria is consistent - take note the next time you come across a fairy patch, to see if it fits his list - you'd be surprised. |
Colby and Madison - Miniature Gardeners - WA |
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| This brother and sister
team found me at one of the shows just outside of Seattle. Their
mom, Stacey, who creates wonderful garden art, and had a booth at the same
show, so I was able to get to know the whole family by the end of the
weekend - a real treat! Both Colby and Madison picked up tips and tricks from my own gardens on display. When I received these pictures from them, I was both delighted and impressed to see just how much these two, very smart, young people picked up in just a short time! |
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These photos were from the summer of 2006 - I imagine their making even more elaborate ones now.
They really pulled if off in this pot. They have planted everything to scale with the tree and really created a vignette that works. Note the wee swing hanging from the tree - how sweet is that!?! |
Marilyn - Fairy Gardener - WA |
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Marilyn has been miniature gardening for many years. You can tell she's having a lot of fun with it by the pot of tea and cups on the table! |
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Would you like that to go? A charming, wee landscape - I just love that gazebo! Note where the fence was placed. She deliberately placed it close to the "tree line" to make to look like the garden was next to a forest. A nice idea! |
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I love the furniture
Marilyn found. The twig motif really adds to the fairy garden theme.
Try making a simplified version of your own. Maybe just a bench
with a stump for a table. The Mary Cicely Barker fairies are truly wonderful and do add that "human element" to a miniature garden scene. It you have one out in your sun garden, make sure to spray it with UV protectant spray or the color s will fade. Ultimately, they are for indoor use, but because they are made of resin, we can easily use them outside. They can withstand the freezing temperatures too. |