{Lily's Garden} Fairy Garden

So I said earlier this summer that I was done adding beds to Lily's Garden. I was wrong. But... this one is different! And I had the room to do it so I figured I'd get it done before we put the gravel down (finally!). 

After having Lily, I decided to have a fairy garden but it just never really happened. I had many thoughts of where it should be, size, things to include, etc but it never came to and so it was always on the back burner. One of many things on our to do list, although it was never a huge priority. That all changed after I finished all the big beds in the flower garden and I was walking around the raised beds and noticed one little area. It's tucked away from the main view of the garden so I thought it would be the perfect spot. It's long and narrow, perfect for a little miniature fairy garden. 

As you can see, I added the bricks to edge it all in and to match the other beds. These are still the bricks we were given for free, so no money was spent there. The houses, larger rocks, and all the other stuff we already had (well, that you can see). The only thing I needed to buy were some plants. 

This rock used to live in my fish tank. I had a 70 gallon fish tank for years (it was huge!) but eventually sold it to a friend. I kept all of the stuff, thinking some day I'd use it again or like what actually happened, it all found its way to the outdoors. I put the marble in it but I think Lily took it out after we finished the garden. 

I had all of the supplies, but a few plants were needed. A local trip to our favorite nursery and a nice 50% off sale got us home with some great sedums and a few others. The sedums above were actually growing together but due to being in one container, they only cost me the price of one. I liked the look so I kept them together. I actually have the smaller type in various other parts of my yard and it spreads like crazy! But it's a great low lying plant and looks great with others. 

I bought a bleeding heart (I forgot the variety) so lets hope it'll survive here. I've had a few before that haven't survived. This one is doing great so far! 

A shot looking down of the "river" we made using things we previously owned. The little bridge and the fairy next to it were bought at our local nursery. Lily really wanted them both and I loved that they were metal. 

The "river" starts with a shell Doug found after he demolished our old concrete stairs (to make room for our deck). The "borders" of the river include larger rocks and shells. Both work to help hold back the fish tank gravel. 

You can see the bridge better in this angle but the fairy hides behind the bleeding heart. Under the bridge we put a small plastic container and filled it with the marbles. It'll actually hold water when I water the plants or it rains. I'd love for a little visitor like a toad or frog to come live here, but I haven't had much luck with them in the past. I guess we're too urban for that, even though the garden would provide lots of food and shelter. 

Lily loves the area and I'm glad I added it. We are trying to finish up the black tarp/ground cover and then we'll be working on getting some rock to fill in the whole garden. Once that's done, I'll show some new photos of everything. I hope to have a true garden tour up before the end of summer.