Today was the Butterfly & Herb Festival at Full Moon Natives & Herbs – a great day spent at the nursery ending with a raffle of a Honey Basket, a Fairy Garden and an Herb Bowl!
Here was the schedule and some links in case you missed it:
10:00 - Gardening for Butterflies by Kevin
There was also a Children’s Activity Area which included Butterfly Lifecycle Displays
11:00 - The World of Fairy Gardens by Joyce Harris
This was my demonstration all about fairies and fairy gardens. In order to help everyone see the fairies, fairy thyme tea and cookies were served!
Thyme is a favorite fairy plant because of its color, fragrance and habit of growth!
FAIRIE THYME TEA
1Tbs thyme
1Tbs calendula
1Tbs chamomile flowers
1Tbs spearmint
1Tbs sage
1Tbs marjoram
1Tbs lemongrass
Mix all together and store in a cool, dry place that is not in the sun. To use, take one teaspoon of the mixture, add boiling water, and allow to steep for 3-5 minutes. Strain tea and sweeten with honey as desired. Serve hot or cold.
FAIRIE THYME ROUNDS
Cream 1c butter and 1c sugar, then add 1 egg, 1Tbs fresh lemon thyme and 1 tsp lemon zest and mix well. Add 2½c flour and 1tsp baking soda, then 1tsp vanilla. Roll into two logs, wrap & refrigerate overnight. Slice, sprinkle with sugar and bake at 350 degrees for 10 mins.
After a little trivia about fairies including their love to feast, sing and dance and create fairy rings where mushrooms are used as tables and stools
. . . and a
short visit from “Ginny” – a fairy that lives in this garden, the demonstration turned to the actual gardens.
FAIRY GARDENS - miniature gardens brimming with charm and intrigue - assembled in container gardens or as a special area of your general garden
- To bring whimsy back into our lives.
- To invite fairies into gardens.
- To give fairies places to hide away from humans.
CONTAINERS (hypertufa troughs, old, weathered terra cotta pots or large saucers, baskets, buckets, hollow logs, raised square foot garden or even teacups)
- sufficient drainage from the bottom and a good soil mix
- fill half with the soil mixture, and then begin placing plants
- 6 to 8 hours in a sunny spot & water daily
HERBS
- choose low-growing herbs because the plants create the miniature landscape and make it manageable.
- Combination of upright, bushy and creeping
Basil (Ocimum basilicum) - Serves as a protector in the garden.
Carnations (Dianthus caryophyllus) - Fairies use the colors to radiate love.
Roman Chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile) – great smelling fairy lawns
Red Clover (Trifolium pratense) – assists in finding love and wealth
Fairywands (Diarama) – Flowers make noise when fairies are in the garden
Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) - Fairy hats and gloves are made from foxglove. The tiny spots on the blossoms are fairy fingerprints.
Heartease (Viola tricolor) – Fairies use as a magic love potion
Lavender (Lavandula) - Wherever this plant is grown, there will be midnight fairy parties. Fairies use it to scent their clothing and make infused wine
Marigold, LEMON GEM (Tagetes tenuifolia) – A marigold jam will make the wee creatures visible to the naked eye
Corsican Mint (Mentha requienii) – soft lawn for fairy foot traffic
Mosses – Fairies love round mossy areas, especially woodland faeries
“The Fairy” Rose (Rosa spp) – A must for a special garden for fairies.
Rosemary, CREEPING (Rosmarius officinalis) – Sicilian faeries make homes under rosemary and rock babies in rosemary flowers.
Sage (Salvia officinalis) - Fairies use it to slow the aging process.
Savory, creeping (Satureja spicigera) – fairy groundcover
Sweet woodruff (Galium odoratum) - The flowers reflect the light of the moon and illuminate fairy dances in the garden.
Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) – Used as a place to build their houses, as resting place, for dancing and as a soft green bed for fairy babies
Violets/Pansies (Viola spp) – Blossoms used for fairy love & sleep potions
ACCESSORIES
- Paths (stones, pea gravel, wood chips, shells), fences (popsicle sticks, twigs), etc.
- Shiny stones like marbles attract fairies
- Fairies love looking at their reflections (ponds, gazing balls)
- Faeries like to be recognized as part of the garden with statues
- You can string bells up to alert you as to when the fairies visit.
Today I created and accessorized this “beach house” fairy garden with thyme, lavender, garlic chives and sensitive mimosa along with sand, ocean, sea shell path, driftwood, a shell pool, gazing ball, starfish decorated rope fence and sea shell decorated beach house!! Hope a fairy will move in soon!
12:00 - Cooking with Herbs by Marvette
1:00 - Earthbarrel Gardens by Kevin
1:30 - How to Make Herbal Vinegars by Linda Johnson
Joyce
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