Back Yard

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Breaking Ground in Fairyland

Breaking Ground

I’ve been gathering materials for my fairy garden and today broke ground on the site.  It was amazingly simple: I didn’t need a permit, a contractor, a surveyor or an inspector.  No bank loans, points, appraisals or hassles.  Life is good.

I unearthed a few tiny bulbs and was happy to see a worm or two as I dug right in.  After removing the remaining bulbs and rocks I sifted the soil, saving the rocks for a small border.

Last Christmas we received a flowering bulb planted in a wide-mouthed drinking glass with clay-like pebbles.  Now that the bulb is dormant, I removed it from the glass and  lined the walkway with the miniature clay balls.  We also received a  plant that resembles a miniature pine tree, perfectly proportioned for the tiny garden.

Lindy Approves

"Towering" Pine

When I shared my plans for a fairy garden, my friend Susan said the following:

“This reminds me of ‘spirit houses‘ built for the spirits disrupted when the break ground to build a new (human) house. You’re supposedly supposed to built a small house (a miniature the size of a bird house, maybe) and place it on a pole or post at the front corner of the yard. If you don’t build this spirit house for the little beings you’ve dislodged from their homes in the soil (or in the foliage?) in acknowledgment of them, they can get angry and bring bad luck to your home.”

I love the idea of making amends with the earth, much as Native Americans did whenever they took from the land.

I can’t wait to get back outdoors again tomorrow.  Meanwhile I’m pondering a variety of ideas, including a woven lavender rug and an archway built with pine cones.  More tomorrow.

Porous Clay "Pebbles"

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Fanciful Fairy Gardens: Available for the Child Within

Future Site of Homes for Fairies and Gnomes

I’m mesmerized by the idea of a fairy garden, a place among the flowers and trees designed to attract “fairies and garden gnomes.”

I was surprised to find entire websites dedicated to this pursuit.  You can buy  hand-carved furniture and tiny fences for your upscale fairy, or you can gather rocks, twigs and leaves and design a starter miniature garden.  I like the creative challenge of using items found in nature.  I could outfit a beautiful pot or corner with purchased items, but I’ll have more fun creating something from scratch.

Two large boulders and a little patch of dirt are within my sights out back, a lovely place for fairies to take up residence.  If you build it, they will come.

Building Materials

Further Fairy Garden Inspiration:

Ask the Party Fairy

The Feathered Nest

The Magic Onions

The Mini Garden Guru

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Brontosauraus Topiary for the Young at Heart

Brontosaurus Topiary

When my boys were small and interested in things like trains and dinosaurs, I spotted a Brontosaurus topiary frame in a garden catalog.  I’d never created a topiary before, but I thought it would be fun to try.  Having children gives you permission to play with Lego’s and to connect train tracks across the living room floor.  It’s also great justification for buying a pricey topiary frame “for the kids.”  I could hardly wait for it to arrive!

I bought and assembled the frame, centering it in the corner garden and bought four small-leafed ivy plants to place in each of the feet.  Somehow I missed a step and all the ivy died.  The small plants simply dried out too quickly.  I bought more ivy, and this time planted straight into the ground.  I stuffed the frame with Sphagnum moss and waited for the plants to fill in.  After a month or so, I had enough ivy to start threading it through the frame.  Eventually it was thick enough to prune.  It took longer than I thought, but the frame filled out and we had an adorable green Brontosaurus in our yard.

The boys are more interested in Minecraft than dinosaurs these days, but the charming little fellow lives on.  I trim it once or twice a year but for the most part it requires very little attention.  After a good prune, I find a small flower for the dinosaur’s eye.  It reminds me of my carefree summer days in our London yard and for just a moment I’m five years old again.

Time for a Trim

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Farmtek: I’ve Arrived

Greenhouse Available from Farmtek®

As a professional organizer, I’ve worked diligently to remove my name from mailing lists.  Using Catalog Choice, I’ve stopped most direct-mail ads and over 100 catalogs from filling my mailbox.

So imagine how silly I looked when a catalog called Farmtek® arrived with today’s mail and my heart skipped a beat.  Did this mean someone thought I was a farmer?  Little did they know I plant on a tiny plot of land in the suburbs of what was once beautiful orchards.  Our entire lot, including the house, is only 6,000 square feet. Once home to apricots and prunes, our agricultural heritage gave way to Apple, Cisco, Intel and HP.

It’s unlikely I’ll be ordering grow lights for my (non-existent) greenhouse or an air inflation system, though the idea of both is appealing.  Thumbing through the catalog I found a few items for small-scale gardeners, but nothing I can’t buy in town.  I’m afraid Farmtek’s® catalog is headed the way of most.  It was fun though, getting a small glimpse into the shopping options of a farmer.

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Blooming Thursday: Where Have all the Flowers Gone?

Blushing Azaleas

Didn’t spring just arrive? According to my calendar, yes. My garden, however moves along at a different pace. Buds are forming on the berry vines, but everything else seems to be heading for the leafy stage of growth. Green is my favorite color so I’m not completely disappointed, but the contrast of pinks, purples, reds and golds is visually stunning. Only two small blooms remain on the Hardenbergia.  This time next week that spectacle of color will be a distant memory.  The Azaleas are popping in pinks and whites.  Soon they’ll flaunt a brilliant show of color.

Taking photographs each day is a rewarding experience.  I’ve bared witness to things in the garden I might have otherwise missed.  This time next year I’ll have a record for comparison.  Today I’m working on living in the moment.  Perhaps my garden is right on schedule and only now am I taking proper notice.

In order to hedge my bets, I think it’s time to visit Almaden Valley Nursery for some summer annuals.  I want to continue my Blooming Thursdays.

Hardenbergia about to close up shop

Magnolia Continues to Flower

Wildflower Holdover from Last Summer

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Mystery Nest: Sticks and Twigs

A critter built a sizable nest at the top of our orange tree using twigs and sticks to support her family. Given the size, I’m wondering if a family of squirrels plans to move in. Opossums are another possibility. I’ve not had the chance to research the style of the nest, and I haven’t seen any “traffic” to indicate who might be up there.

I’m fascinated by nests, and the resourcefulness of the resident builder. I hope she reveals herself in the weeks to come.

Who do you think built this nest?

Mystery Nest

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Hide and Seek in the Garden

I’m in beautiful Marina del Rey today, enjoying a long overdue catch-up with good friends. My room with a view opens up to sand, surf, seagulls, and last night, a duck next to the pool. Good times!

I plan to snap some shots of the local flora to share with all of you when I return. I love travel and time with friends as much as I love my home, my family and the felines that keep me on my toes.

Slinky and Lindy are still working out the order of dominance, hence this brief game of kitty hide and seek. I’m not privy to their private thoughts, but when I return they’ll have a story to tell, the subtext of which is “where have you been?!”

Hide and Seek

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Blueberries: The Third Year it Leaps!

It was heartening to read on one of my favorite blogs yesterday, that my blueberries may start producing this year. We didn’t have any production the first year, and only 4 berries (four!!!) last year.

Blueberry Bush

According to What’s Green with Betsy?!?:

“This will probably be the year it produces. According to my arborist husband, “the first year it sleeps, the second year it creeps, the third year it leaps”. Your plant has been working on root development for the first two years. There is a lot going on beneath the soil that we can’t see.”

I’ll keep you posted.

In the meantime, check out What’s Green with Betsy for some great, earth-friendly gardening tips.

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Vernal Equinox in my own Backyard

Happy spring!  Here’s what’s happening in my own little slice of garden paradise.

To Bee, or Not To Bee?

Raspberry Vines

No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn. ~Hal Borland

Flowering Bulbs and Budding Fuchsia

I love spring anywhere, but if I could choose I would always greet it in a garden. ~Ruth Stout

Pittosporum Greens

In the spring I have counted one hundred and thirty-six different kinds of weather inside of four and twenty hours. ~Mark Twain

Flowering Carrot

Spring is sooner recognized by plants than by men. ~Chinese Proverb

The Bees Arrive on Schedule

All things lavender:

Cowichan Valley Lavender Farm: Beautiful drawings and additional links

Lavender Crafts: How to make lavender wands.

Learn more about the relaxing properties of lavender at The Hub

Provencal Lavender Field Maps (for that fantasy vacation to France)

Lavender in art: Watercolor on Etsy.com

 

For additional garden quotes, visit the Quote Garden.

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Spring it On!

Patio Garden

Hooray for spring which officially arrives on our coast around 1 am tomorrow.   Spring Equinox symbolizes the re-emergence of plants and trees awakening from winter’s slumber.  It also means longer lines at the garden center.

When I was single and working full-time I used to use some of my paid time off  each spring to start my garden.  It didn’t matter where I was living, I always found a way to break ground even if it meant settling for a patio garden.  When I rented a room in a house in Willow Glen, I planted in the three narrow strips lining the driveway.  My production was minimal in that miniscule plot, but the corn got plenty of sun, and I had the immense pleasure of gardening.

When the Willow Glen owner sold the house and gave us the boot, I moved to an apartment in nearby Campbell.  I managed to cram about 20 houseplants into my 400 square foot apartment, valuing greenery over any superfluous furniture.  As I set down emotional roots, so too did my garden expand.  I spent my weekends at local nurseries and assorted home and garden centers planning for my little patio.  One pot became three and eventually I lined both sides of the narrow walkway with potted flowers and plants.  I added vines along the fence, and even planted some zucchini behind my apartment, though I really didn’t have enough sun.  I planted flowers along the path to  my door, to the delight of my neighbors who shared the view.  The owners of our four-plex preferred simple cement.  It was nice to have a bit of green along the walkway, welcoming me home each day.

I married my husband in 1995 and settled in a quiet neighborhood, known for excellent schools.  It was important to both of us that we raise our boys in one place, having bounced around so much in our own youth.   I’ve enjoyed it immensely.  It took awhile to realize I could turn plants loose from their pots and allow them to put down roots.  I love the stability that allows me to plan a garden from year to year, not worrying about evictions or troubles from the city. My Campbell four-plex, as it turned out, was illegal.  It has since been torn down and replaced with a single-family dwelling.

Life is impermanent and change is inevitable.  But year after year, spring arrives, and along with it feelings of hope.    In the end, it’s not about yields but about the joy of the practice, the nuanced discoveries and the dirt under your nails.

What are you planting this spring?

Plants and Cats