Fairy Gardens

Have you ever seen one in real life? Not a fairy, but a fairy garden! I've come across pins for various miniature and magical looking gardens but I have never seen one in person until I was at the garden store the other day. They are so sweet and whimsical and I feel that they remind you that it's ok to believe in a little magic here and there. As children we run free and so do our imaginations and dreams of magical things. As adults we look to logic and scoff at such whimsey, seeing it as impractical or a waste of our very grown up and very precious time. This is why I love these little enchanted gardens. It brings back that feeling of childhood wonder and amusement in fantastical things!

I really like this one below because it's an edible fairy garden! Wouldn't this make a cute gift? I have one of these "Red Robin" tomato plants and the first ones are just starting to ripen. They are squatty and stout, getting only 12" high at max with small clusters of red fruit. The green mossy looking stuff in the front is some kind of micro thyme or oregano. Neat!

I would love to put one of these in my yard but I think Asher would enjoy dismantling it. Maybe when he's a little older we can do one together!

One Love,

Neely

Strawberry Rocks - I did a pin!

You read that right, folks. I actually did a pin that I found on pinterest! How many of us go on Pinterest and pin all kinds of fun and fascinating things, ultimately creating a HUGE to-do list for ourselves that's delusionally optimistic at best? Pinning is addicting but actually implementing some of the tips and to-do's in real life may be even more addicting! Dare I say... I even challenged myself to doing one pin per day? Haha, it was more of a fleeting thought. Let's not kid ourselves.

I started a garden this year! It was a late start due to the landscaping project we had in the works for May-June. All in all I believe we planted about a month late. Our neighbors have gardens and have given us some samples of their zucchini, chard, chives, basil, cayenne peppers, and tomatoes. Can I just say... I'm jealous! Still, we have things growing slowly and one thing that's growing for sure is a pest problem! Currently we have some kind of black mite that is eating our lettuce and several squirrels that steal and bite on everything else. Naturally I called upon the plethora of knowledge found on Pinterest and here is the result:

Rocks painted to look like strawberries! And what do you know? It works! Mostly... 

Squirrel bites! Those sneaky little pests couldn't help but chomp down! As far as the process, I busted out some acrylic paints and found a few strawberry-shaped-rocks. It took a few coats and some drying time but overall, it worked! I will say that these pretty and juicy looking painted rocks attracted the squirrels instead of deterring them. Therefore, I move them around each morning and do not place them right in the strawberry plant, where it would naturally grow, but more dispersed around them. I found that if placed right by the plant, they give the rocks a nibble and then move right onto the blooms and buds.

I also ordered a garden owl on Amazon to scare squirrels and birds away. Look at his face, it makes me laugh! He gets a new perch every morning to keep the pests on their toes ;)

I don't see any birds around but I do know the squirrels are merely amused by the garden owl. Today I sprayed a solution of biodegradable dish soap and water to get rid of mites on the lettuces. Then I sprinkled cayenne pepper around the plants that the squirrels seem to enjoy most: zucchini (flowers only, as we have yet to get any fruits going before they are stollen), tomatoes, and strawberries (or strawberry rocks) because I have heard they won't go sniffing around near it. We shall see! I don't really know what I'm doing but I'm having fun! Here's hoping some sun, water, and love brings a harvest.