Every "Home" Needs Curb Appeal

 It had to be done.  In February we purchase our new baby chicks and built them a chicken coop.  After putting it all together and visiting with them each day, I decided the area needed some TLC to give them a homey look.  Every home needs curbs appeal.  It looked so barren before I put a little touch to it.

Not exactly the place you'd want to invite "friends" to visit. LOL.  I started by working the dirt and then putting in some bulbs.  I have Dahlia's and along the front side and Beard Dianthus along the back.  Also along the back I planted some Sunflowers.  These will take awhile to grow so I needed some plants for the front. 

You can barley see them but they're there. These will grow to approx. 4' tall, Sunflowers.

In front of the sunflowers will be the Beard Dianthus. It will give a nice layered look.

In the front I planted the Blue Butterfly Shrub and also the Pink Whirling Butterflies.

My husband bought a Jalapeno bush while we were out so I planted it out there too.  It will only last until it finishes producing the peppers.  

 I added some stepping stones in front of the door for the "walkway".  A friend shared with me a video of how to turn a pot into a Hobbit house by turning the pot sideways and gluing moss all around it. So, I found a pot and did just that.  I also had a door that was the perfect size to put in front of the pot to finish off the house.

I planted some Mother of a Million Tears (catcus) on each side of it.  As this plant grows it will produce plenty of babies that I can plant in various places along the new "river".  And I added some whimsy to complete the front. A little bistro set, some stones for the walkway to the Hobbit House, and a Gnome.

 On this end I added a little "pond" with some chickens enjoying a cool drink and another gnome and walkway to the fairy house.  I love the magic.

                                      A splash of blue aquarium rock makes a nice river look.

                                             And of course, every river needs a little bridge.

 The gals kept a close eye on me to see what I was doing to their landscape.  A friend suggested they might have been thinking "Mom likes to dig in the dirt too"....they are right ...grin.

 A couple of days and a few hours work and I'm pleased with the new curb appeal of our gals home.  I can't wait for the bulbs to come up and bloom and give a huge color pop to this area.  The area to the right is unplanted.  The coop is mobile and once a month I pull it out and clean underneath so there won't be a build up of chicken droppings.  This will eventually make a great compost but because it's so high in nitrogen, it will take quite awhile to break down.  Never add chicken droppings directly to plantings. It will burn them.  But when landscaping the area, I had to make sure to have a way to pull the coop out for cleaning and maintenance yet maintain the landscape. So I put a magical "tic tac toe" game to fill in the space.

 Once the bulbs grow along the side and back I plan to complete the details of a village around the side and back.  I can't do it right now because I forgot the exact placement of the bulbs..lol.  But, when our Granddaughters come, this little area will add another spark of magic to the yard as well as the fascination of the chickens.

Eventually there will be an arbor in front with a sky vine to make an inviting entrance.  That's my dirt for today.   The magic is everywhere, if you look for it. 

How to Make A PVC Strawberry Planter Fairy Garden

This design is not my idea.  I saw a picture on FaceBook and decided I would give it a try.  I didn't see a list of items needed or instructions, just the picture. Also, it was written in Portuguese.  I believe they used PVC pipe, PVC T's and PVC 90's.  Upon my arrival at Home Depot with the list I made, I was very surprised to see how much these items cost, in the larger sizes. So, I stuck to my budget of $40 and made some decisions of changes to what I would buy and kept my cost down.  I purchased a 4" x 24" of PVC. It was all ready cut so the size of length was determined for me.  I then found these Y shaped pieces (there were pricey at $8.00, +\- a couple cents, each)  I found a pot that would fit in the top of the PVC.  I wanted a little flare at the top.The large pot was all ready on hand to mount the "structure" into.  And, quite by surprise, I found a little fairy kit :-)  Fairy not included but the kit was complete and cheep enough to stay in budget.  I also bought some spray paint to "bring the little pot into a "rhythm" with colors.  Below are the times I purchased.

Almost forgot, I bought some strawberries and a little Begonia.   Time to assemble.  I'm not allowed to use the chop saw, unsupervised. For some reason, my husband believes I will chop my fingers off and I didn't want to cut the PVC with a hand saw, laziness on my part, so my husband cut the 4"x24" pvc into 8" long sections. I then lightly - and lightly is a key word so as not to break the pvc, hammered my pieces together.  I wish I would have gotten a picture of the face of the customer service rep. when he came to assist me in selecting my pipe.  He just knew I had no clue what I was buying and asked if I needed help.  I said no. He asked what plumbing project I was working on and I promptly said, A Strawberry Planter.  Yes...lol.  I wish I had had my camera.  LOL.  I didn't need glue as this won't be under pressure but I did lightly hammer the pieces together to make them good and snug.  An 8" section at the bottom, A Y thing (I apologize.I have no clue what that piece is called), another 8" section, another Y and the last 8" section. Like so .....

And spray paint.  I did this on a windy day.....and you'll see what happened when I walked away.  Luckily it was almost dry...almost.... but I touched it up.

Then we take the planter and insert it in our pot, half filled with dirt and fill in around it to the top  (leave a good 2" from the top of the dirt to the pot rim) and fill the entire "structure" with dirt.  I stuck my hand in the bottom hole and pushed down and then when I got half way up I packed the dirt again and the same with the next side hole and so on until I reached the top.  

 And planted my strawberries in the 2 side sections and half of the back of the large pot.  I have more strawberries coming, so the other half is "dirt in waiting".  I ordered some Pineberries.  They are native to Chili and not modified or a cross mixture.  They are white berries with red seeds and the flavor is a mix of pineapple and strawberries.  Try some. You'll love them.  Anyway, back to the planter.  After getting my strawberries planted, I dabbed a little silicone around the edges of the top - just for safety of the little pot.  And put the pot on top with the little Begonia planted in it.

I dressed it all up with red mulch and made a little fairy village at the bottom.  It's all about the magic and dirt in my world and how I can bring them both together.....grin......

Water with a watering can or a out of a bottle.  If you use a hose the water pressure will be too strong.  And the success for watering in the Y's is much better.  The pot at the top has a hole in the bottom so that water will flow on down as well.

When the strawberries grow I will share an update.  But for now, I like the outcome and have great anticipation of the berries that will be harvested for jam on my toast. If you make one, please share with me. I love seeing others creations!  Thanks for dropping in to see the dirt I've been into.  Enjoy the magic.  It's everywhere ...... if you look!! 

The Beautiful Blue Butterfly Shrub

One of the most magical shrubs I have is the Blue Butterfly Shrub. Also known as an Oxford Bush or a Cambridge Bush.  It's in the family Verbanceae and a Chlerodendrum.   The flowers on this shrub look exactly like a blue butterfly - thus the name. The Blue Butterfly is an Evergreen that will grow to heights of 10 feet.  It's recommend to prune it when it appears leggy at the top. This will help it bush out and produce an even more beautiful shrub.

At the ends of the branches are panicles about 4"-10" (stems with buds) that will produce individual flowers about 1".  There are 3 pale blue and 1 violet blue lobes that produce the "wings and body" with antennas that look just like those of a butterfly.

 They are easily propagated from cuttings.  Cut the stem just below a leaf nodule and trim the top just above one.  6" is a good size.  I simply dip them in rooting hormone and put them in peat.  At this point I don't use dirt.  Peat is good and sterile. While it does dry out quicker then if there were dirt, I have more success in rooting my Butterflies with this method.   Put a plastic bag over it to help retain humidity and make sure it doesn't dry out.  Within a month you should see new growth.  Once I see new growth, I wait about another 2 weeks and then transplant it into a larger container, with a good potting soil, and maintain it as normal.  They do like a good bit of water during growing season.  Don't let them dry out but not soggy either.  They will bloom, almost constantly, from Summer until Fall.

They like partial shade to semi full sun.  I have one in full sun that requires more watering then the one I have in partial shade. Both bloom very well for me.  They are outdoor hardy in zones 9-10 but will tolerate a ground freeze, zones 8-9, and shoot up new growth in the spring.  The roots can not stand freeze as it will kill the plant.  They make great container plants in cold climates. Plant in a large container and bring inside at the first hint of a freeze.  Place in a sunny window and they will stay green for you over the winter.  

If you get a chance to come across the Blue Butterfly, I recommend them highly for your yard.  Make a little fairy garden at the bottom and add a bit more magic :-)   That's the dirt I've been in today - taking cuttings and moving them to my greenhouse with great anticipation of new plants.  

Enjoy the magic!! It's everywhere if you look for it :-)  

A Picture Tutorial of a Small Fairy Garden

I showed you how to make a fairy garden fountain and the videos of creating a fairy garden against an existing structure.  Today I thought I would share the first fairy garden I made.  It all began quite by accident.  I was going to make a planter for a bonsai tree.  The foam fell, lesson 1. don't pile it too high, and the idea of the fairy garden was born.  This first picture is the foam without any detail.

I know, my husband said the same thing, it looks like a cake with run away icing...lol.  I spray painted it and thought the little area to the right would made a great "pond" so this next picture shows how I painted it.

Starting to look like something.   Then I took some colored glass and a little bridge and made my pond.

You can see that I added a gnome, a door, and window on the front.  I have a picture, following, showing that up close.

I then built a "park" on top, added my bonsai and a wizard and walla....a new fairy garden.

I hope this gives some incentive to give it a try.  I found, in shopping, that the cottages and houses are very expensive and you still have to build the garden around them.  By using the foam, I've learned to incorporate it all into one.      Enjoy your day and be sure to look for the magic!! It's everywhere!!!

Another Unique Fairy Garden Fountain Build Tutorial through Pictures

I was asked to build a fountain for a friend to put in her consignment shop.  She didn't care what it looked like. She just wanted water flowing.  I had an old aviary that was used for finches.  So, I took it apart and reused the wood and screen.

I had an old piece from a fountain that at one time was used in a corner of the yard.  Through landscaping and planting, the fountain was disassembled and other parts used elsewhere.  This piece was left over.

I built the wood into a frame for the water fall and mounted the old fountain piece onto it.  I used a drawer from a plastic filing cabinet to hold the pump and water.  I then fed the tube from the drawer up to the top of the "water fall".  The water will circulate from the bottom to the top and down the falls.

I then put the screening around the entire fountain and started foaming.  This process took about a week as the foam has to be done in layers so that it will cure before additional layers can be applied.

The inspiration for the design came from this dragon I had in an older fairy garden.  He would be the main piece at the top of the fountain - where he has all the jewels of the kindom...Lol.

 And the foaming is completed and ready to paint.

As with all my fountain and fairy gardens, there is a bridge to cross the river.

 The painting is completed and the fountain is ready for the "kingdom" to be put into place.

 The aforementioned dragon nestled on his jewels.

 I added silk and plastic flowers and moss.  There are gnomes going up a ladder to get the jewels from the dragon.

 Fairies and doors and sitting areas and another bridge.

 And the end of the river flows into the "water holding area".

 And more decorations along the side to give it a rounded out view point..

 The finished product.

3 years later, it has held up well and this is it's permanent home under the house.  It's a magical piece for our grandchildren and us.   I hope you "take the plunge" and give it a try.  Spray foam in a can. Who knew!!!!