Fairy Gardens - why bother?

It’s been a long week for the Garden Caretaker.  Meaning, caretaking involved more than tending to new plants.  As this blog has implied from the beginning, the Garden Caretaker draws parallels between the cancer world and the garden.  

My daughter Genny was in the hospital this past week.  Long story.  Won’t go into all of the reasons why.  Let it suffice to say it was scary stuff.  But she’s much better and home now.  And five days later, I’ve left her side to return to my own home.  And to my spring garden.  I promised Genny I would make her a fairy planter.  And so I have.

Genny likes bright, vibrant colors.  I like muted tones.  I think you can figure out which fairy garden is hers.  Which is mine.

Why a fairy garden?  We all know fairies aren’t real.  But aren’t they lovely?  A bit of pixie dust — and we can believe in miracles.  In healing.  In life and the good kind of growth.  Not the cancer growth.

I planted dill and rosemary in Genny's fairy garden.  Why?  Well, rosemary in particular because my Aunt Rosemary gained her angle wings a little over a week ago.  I thought it was a nice tribute.  Dill — well, because who doesn’t like dill?  In the flat round bowl, I planted basil plants, along with chives, garlic and cilantro seeds.  When the seeds germinate, you’ll have to look long and hard for the sliver fairy and her accrutements.  It will be as though she lives in a woodland area.

I also planted green beans today along with yellow squash.  Last week, I sowed the peas.  All of my vegetables are in containers.  The rabbits destroyed my backyard and we had to re-landscape with a rock garden.  Even rabbits can’t tunnel through rock.

So here’s to fairies, and hope, and new seedlings popping their heads up through fertile soil.  Here’s to life in the garden.