A little at a time

Slowly I'm preparing the transition from this home to our new one.  In a month and a half we will move away from the only home that Ky has ever had.  Part of this change will be to process stages that he has passed through here, although the process will probably be more for me than him.  I don't move very easily.  I have felt ready for this change for months now so I am more optimistic than usual about packing, cleaning and culling but I feel the need to mark occasions that we've had here and leave physical evidence of our family's growth over the last 2 years.

When Ky was six months old I created a naming ritual for him.  In that ritual I made a rosemary wreath tied with a silver bell to hang in his room.  Many moons before his birth I read in a ritual book that I didn't own and I've long forgotten the title to about a rosemary wreath being dedicated to a child at six months of age and hung over or near their bed.  This wreath was supposed to deter naughty fairies from influencing the baby in a negative way.  In my research for creating a fairy garden I found that rosemary repels fairies. 

Since Ky is now two and a half I think he is strong enough in spirit to move beyond the initial sentiment in the wreath.  It represents his babyhood and with each day he becomes more and more a little boy and the baby in him fades into memory.  With that I decided to bury the wreath in the garden here rather than take it with us to our new home.  New energies await us there and it seemed fitting to keep his babyhood here where he was born and where he grew from a newborn to a toddler.

The wreath now rests in the soil near the primroses, hosta and lily of the valley.   Soon it will break down and feed the soil there.  The process of letting go has begun here in the earth....a little at a time.

On a side note Happy Canada Day to all Canadians and Happy Fourth of July to those of you from the U.S.  I hope you all have great long weekends of celebrations. 

A Wonderful Piece of Art

A lucky girl I am.  Why you ask?  Well, look at what was gifted to me recently.  This original piece of fairy wonder by the multi-talented  Sarah Biggs. 

She is my garden fairy but of course she won't be in the actual garden just watching over it.  I love the colours on her wings, the delicate hands and the tilt of her head. 

It is interesting to see yourself reflected in a piece of art that someone makes just for you.  I am amazed by  her aesthetic and what she mirrors of myself.  Regardless of the fact that Sarah and I have never met she was able to get this impression of me from this blog. 

I'll say it again, I'm a lucky girl.  Now I just have to find the perfect spot for her...and maybe she needs a name too.  What would you name her?

Tales from my Garden: Primroses & Fairies

When we first moved here 2 and a half years ago I decided to dedicate the small plot in the front of the house to fairies and try and plant plants that they would like. This lead to some research on not only plants that they like but ones that are happy with little sun and less than perfect soil conditions. I am no master gardener. I have at times been arrogant to think that I have a green thumb of sorts but clearly the last year has taken my beginners luck and cut me down to size.


Since I insist on learning in the trial and error way it seems that my biggest success so far has been the primroses or in Latin if you prefer primula. The first ones I planted in the spring of 2008 are so very lovely and are proliferating which means that in a few weeks after they are done blooming I'll spread them out a bit. Last year I added pink to the happy yellow ones and they were the first thing to bloom in my garden this year....way back in February. Last year the blue bloomed as well but I have yet to see that one this year. Over the summer they tend to die back due to the sun and difficulty I have keeping them as moist as they like (a drainage issue I think which I'm trying to fix) but each winter/spring they greet me with their happy green leaves and I am delighted that they like the space I've given them here.

Folklore abounds about fairies and primroses, plant a ring of primula around a rock and you make a fairy ring. Peer over the petals and you'll see the fey. Shakespeare wrote of them often as well. They are such joy inducing blooms, small and colourful it just makes sense to me that the fairies would love them.

Last year I decided to add plants that attract butterflies and bees to my list and so I am awaiting the greening of the survivors from winter to see how many are returning this year but so far I'm happy to see that most are pulling through. The northwest corner of my little plot seems the hardest on plants, I have yet to find something that is happy there and comes back again but I'm persistent in this quest so I will keep on trying. Maybe I should seek some guidance from the fairies as to what they want in that area. It feels nice to have plants to talk about again. Happy Gardening!