• Faerie Gardening 101

This year, I’ve been noticing faeries popping up in my life over and over again, especially when I’m not looking for them or paying attention. So I took that as a sign. I decided I was going to make a faerie garden and welcome them into my life in a more purposeful, thoughtful way. Literally the next day, I went to KarmaFest and the first class on the docket was about faeries and faerie gardening in particular. It was clearly a sign that I needed to dive deeper into this. I took furious notes, and have been experimenting with things for the past few months, and I wanted to tell you what I’ve learned so far.

I’m in no way an expert on faeries; if anything, I’m a novice. I’m just intensely fascinated with them for the first time in my life, and if you’re interested in them too, I encourage you to seek them out and welcome them into your world. And the best way to do that is to create a faerie garden.

Faerie Gardening 101 | Uncustomary

Faerie Background

There are spirit beings all around us. Two thirds of the world actually believe in fairies (remember, that’s all over the world, not just the US). Faeries are elementals and live in the third dimension; they have very dense vibrations. Faeries are usually orbs of light and sometimes they appear exactly the way we expect them to appear (tip: unfocus your eyes to see them). Sometimes it’s as simple as when you smell a flower and there are no flowers to be found, or when you see a mushroom grow… that’s the presence of a faerie.

Every faerie has a job (protecting trees, colors, roots, etc). There are all different kinds of fae (like Leprachauns who work with abundance and move things around the universe). Faeries scan energy and are pretty judgmental of if you’re being kind to the planet. They can offer sacred soul inspiration. They make flowers more vibrant and grow better, they can allow for Roses and Gerber Daisies to grow in the snow in the winter.

Faerie Garden Placement

First of all, I don’t want to hear that you can’t have a fairy garden because you live in the city. I live in the city, and even though I live across the street from a park, there is no sign of anything but concrete on my property anywhere. You can have a faerie garden inside if you need to. If you have a place to actually dig into the earth, that’s obviously preferable, but if you need to use raised beds, or get additional beds that you just drill holes into the bottoms of for water drainage and lay on the concrete of your front stoop or back porch, that is entirely okay. You can also consider composting for your gardens. Read more: Composting 101. I have a car port, so that’s where mine is, but the reality is it’s next to recycling bins and an air conditioning unit. It’s not ideal, but it works. Okay, now that we know it can work anywhere, here are ideal things to consider if your conditions allow for it:

  • Outdoors
  • Semi-shady
  • Directly in the ground, lots of grass
  • As far away from the house and foot-traffic as possible
  • Over-grown/not over-groomed
  • Near a tree(s)

Faerie Gardening 101 | Uncustomary

How To Be Kind To Faeries

  • Don’t use harsh chemicals on your lawn
  • Pick up trash
  • Read them fairytales
  • Play them music
  • Hang up chimes
  • Leave around strings of crystal beads or crystals/gemstones and seashells
  • Don’t be judgmental
  • Put out flat mirrors (lakes)
  • Build them furniture (houses, castles, seats, bridges)
  • Make a welcome sign
  • Feed them raw cacao nips, organic grapes, organic bananas, milk, and raw honey
  • Before you cut flowers or herbs from the garden, ask, “Can I please have your life?”

Faerie Gardening 101 | Uncustomary




Faerie Garden Tips

  • Plan your garden ahead of time in terms of layout
  • Plant both plants and flowers
  • Dig extra space for the holes of the plants/flowers so the roots can grow
  • Water your plants often (but be careful not to over-water! Check to see if the soil is moist)
  • Place a bench or some place for you to sit and be with the faeries and sit with them multiple times a week
  • Dedicate your faerie garden (do it with a specific intention)
  • When your garden is finished, say out loud that you welcome all nature spirits, elementals, and faeries to the space and honor them
  • You can purchase all types of furniture, signs, and other whimsical add-ons at your local craft store
  • Feel free to make the furniture yourself, though, and don’t forget to make it colorful and decorative!
  • Dusk is the best time to observe faeries

Faerie Gardening 101 | Uncustomary

Flowers/Plants To Garden With

  • Morning Glory – release old habits; cultivate new ones and become fun and spontaneous
  • Coleus – new spiritual path; strength, power, beauty
  • Geranium – new vitality/happiness; can show you missed opportunities for joy
  • Petunias – manifesting joy; connection between higher self and daily personality
  • Zinnias – childlike play; hope
  • Rose – ties to angels; love, sacred connection
  • Forget-Me-Not – past lives; karma
  • Chrysanthemum – open up your heart
  • Anemone – break through fear; work through melancholic stages
  • Peony – inner light; artistic abilities
  • Marigolds – intuition; psychic abilities
  • Iris – connections to nature
  • Dahlia – self-worth and self-love

Have you ever made a faerie garden? Would you like to?

Photos: Maura Housley