: Outdoor & Garden
I’ve been MIA for the past few months as I’ve been up to my eyeballs in post-season Little League baseball. Now that the Little League season is winding down, I’m excited to get back to The Lady DIY! I’m way overdue to post an update on the progress of our suburban vegetable garden; we’re now about two and a half months in, and my intention was to post every month or so. (You know what they say about good intentions.)
An update on suburban vegetable gardening: lots of zucchini, one out-of-control pumpkin plant, and some tomato-loving rats.
Considering that I haven’t had much time to devote to our little garden, there are some great things happening. We got lucky this year with the weather and actually got a few weeks of spring. (Usually, it feels like we go from winter to 100+ degree heat within about a two-week span.) The extra few weeks of gradually warming weather allowed the plants to get established before the heat of the summer arrived. It also helps that my mom is an amazing gardening and has been putting in time while I’ve been MIA.
Spring is absolutely, hands-down, my favorite time to get out in the yard and garden. After a particularly wet winter in Northern California, our landscaping is looking especially vibrant and lush. I love seeing all of the bright green, new growth covering all of the plants.
The arrival of warmer days also mean that it’s time to get our little suburban vegetable garden planted. We have a fairly typical, suburban backyard, about three-quarters of which are occupied by our patio and pool. We have limited space left for a garden, so I rely on container gardening and a small, raised bed garden.
When planning our garden each spring, I always start with the tomato plants. Not only do we eat a LOT of tomatoes throughout the year, but with the abundant sunshine and HOT weather that we get during the summer, tomatoes are some of the easiest veggies to grow in our area.
I’ve loved miniatures since I was a kid.
One of my earliest DIY projects was building a dollhouse from a kit. I spent hours and hours painting, assembling, and crafting tiny, little accessories. I still have that dollhouse; in true DIY style, it’s still a work in progress.
My love of gardening also started when I was young. I loved helping my mom put new plants in the ground each spring, and watching how they grew. We had lots of edibles in our garden (including my absolute favorites, raspberries); even as a child, I could appreciate the satisfaction of eating something that I had planted. (And to this day, there is very little that compares to eating fresh raspberries that are still warm from the sun.) [read more=”Read More” less=”Read Less”]
The increasing popularity of fairy gardens over the last couple of years is a match made in heaven of these two distinctive hobbies. I love seeing all of the creative ideas that people have come up with to personalize their own fairy gardens, as well as the tiny, DIY accessories tucked in among tiny, fairy-sized plants.
Unfortunately, my three boys have little-to-no interest in anything related to fairies. However, when I suggested that we plant a Leprechaun Garden, I found some willing and eager participants. My thirteen year old said, “That’s actually kind of cool.” I’m calling that a Mom Win.
How to Make a Leprechaun Garden
Supplies Needed:
- Planter or pot (mine is about 12″ in diameter)
- Potting soil
- “Tiny” Plants (I used Red Thyme, Alssum, and Spike Dracaena, found in the outdoor section of the home supply store)
- Rocks – spray-painted gold
- Small plastic cauldron (found at a party supply store)
- Any other accessories that you think a Leprechaun would like. I used some glass gems (leftover from a floral project) to create a path.
Let’s Get Started!
- Start by adding a layer of potting soil in your planter or pot. You’ll want to add enough soil so that when you add the plants, the top of the root ball is about 1” below the top of the pot.
- Figure out the best arrangement of the plants. If you leave the plants in their plastic pots to start, you can move them around and figure out what works best. A good rule of thumb to follow:
- Taller plants (the “thrillers”) towards the back of the pot
- Mid-height plants (the “fillers”) in the middle of the pot
- Short plants that will grow over and down sides of the pot placed in the front (the “spillers”)
As you’re moving the plants around, keep in mind how any accessories will fit into the final arrangement.
- Once you’ve figured out the best arrangement of your plants, remove each plant from it’s plastic pot, loosen the root ball a little and add it to the planter. When all of the plants have been added, add more potting soil to fill in any holes.
- Now it’s time to add accessories: I added a meandering garden path, made out of glass gems. All Leprechauns love a pot o’ gold, so I made sure to include a pot in our garden.
Your local craft store is a great place to find fun accessories for your Leprechaun garden!
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