Fairy Garden Flowers for Faeries

How to Design & Plant a Fairy Theme Flower Garden to Attract Fairies

Feb 23, 2007 Barbara M. Martin

Design a perfect tiny fairy theme garden for flower fairies or flower faeries. Plant favorite fairy flowers, add the best fairy toys, treasures and trinkets.

To design and plant a garden for fairies or faeries as you prefer, begin by thinking small. You’ll need a small, sheltered, fairy-size area perhaps beneath a rose bush, or possibly a found object such as a basket to use for a fairy garden in a container; a selection of small plants attractive to or useful to fairies; and small ornaments and treasures to tempt and please the fairies. Each fairy garden is unique depending on the person who creates it and the fairies who move into it, but there are certain flowers such as foxgloves and thyme that you should include if you can. It's best if you can have a child help you with your fairy garden design. Here are some guidelines on flowers and special features to include when you design your fairy garden – whether you call them flower fairies or faeries.

Flowers to Welcome the Fairies

Partial shade with dancing rays of sun and moonlight is the best lighting for a fairy garden, a spot beneath a flowering rose bush or other fragrant flowering shrub is perfect, especially if it is adorned with sweet peas (Lathyrus odorata). To roll out the favorite fairy carpet, be sure to plant fragrant thyme. Thymus "Elfin" is the variety of choice because it is very tiny -- in addition to being so appropriately named. To make the fairies feel at home right away, plant pansies and violas with their sweet little fairy faces.

Flowers for Fairy Clothes and Comfort

To help your fairies dress well, cultivate foxgloves (Digitalis) and granny’s bonnets (Aquilegia or columbine), bleeding hearts (Dicentra) and lady’s slippers (Cypripedium). Plant lamb’s ear (Stachys lanata) for a soft bed, along with Queen Anne’s lace (Daucus carota or wild carrot) for lacy sheets, and a bit of thistle or milkweed (Asclepias) for filling soft, downy pillows. Lavender (Lavandula or Lavandin) makes a lovely fragrant fairy clothesline.

Flowers for Fairies to Use

Milkweed pods make darling fairy cradles, walnut shells make little boats for drifting merrily across a puddle. Acorn shells serve as generous fairy bowls, and bread seed poppy pods (Papaver ssp.) are perfect for a soothing sip of tea. With tea, the diminutive Corsican mint (Mentha requienii) is a lovely miniature garnish. Four o'clocks (Mirabilis jalapa) help them tell when it is time to play.

Jewels and Treasure for the Fairy Garden

Fairy gardens often include shiny treasures; jewels are especially popular with fairies. Grow lady’s mantle (Alchemilla mollis) for dewdrops that glisten like diamonds. Sparkling "Little Rubies" dianthus is a tiny sized, flowering, ground covering plant perfect for a fairy garden, especially if placed between tiny step stones or beneath a little fairy size twig bench.

Flowers for Playful Fairies

Fairies are infinitely playful and can be naughty if bored, so be sure to provide fairy toys in your fairy garden. Fairies love to play the bells from the coral bell (Heuchera) and lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis) plants. Snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus) flowers are fairy puppets, and fairies love to rearrange tiny seashells or bits of colored beach glass. Butterflies, ladybugs and fireflies are perfect fairy playmates.

Silver and Gold in the Fairy Garden

Fairies do love shiny things, so remember to grow silvery Lunaria or money plant. The fairies will caress them and wear away the papery covering to reveal the iridescent silver coins for you. Besides growing money plant, you must also provide gold for your fairies. A gold coin (or a golden parking token) or perhaps a little gold charm (gold toned plastic is fine) from a bracelet, or even a bit of golden foil or ribbon will do.

Water Feature in the Fairy Garden

Your fairy garden must include water; a small, gently splashing waterfall or bubbling brook with watercress is best, but a little shallow dish of clean water will do. Toadstools, lichen and moss are good additions, too. Finally, include a bit of mirror for good luck.

How to Design a Flower Fairy or Faery Garden

Follow the above suggestions for a fairy themed garden but adapt them as needed, they are just suggestions to give you ideas for planting and designing and furnishing a fairy garden. Every fairy garden planted with love will attract and delight the garden fairies and any little thing you do to make them happy will be appreciated. Happy fairies mean a happy garden!

You might also enjoy More of My Garden Design Ideas Tips and Inspiration...

For more children's gardening and ideas for a child to have fun in the garden see Five Fun Flowers for Kids Garden .

The copyright of the article Fairy Garden Flowers for Faeries in Flower Gardens is owned by Barbara M. Martin. Permission to republish Fairy Garden Flowers for Faeries in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.