About that New Year's Eve Garden...
This is the same miniature garden I sent out earlier this week, late on New Year's Eve to wish you a Happy New Year - I just photographed it with a different background.
- The Intention
I wanted to make a fantasy garden for New Years Eve to stage a wee sled that I had customized for it. The idea was inspired by some pink, glittery ball ornaments that were leftover from one of my full-sized garden design jobs. I thought I could make a Sugarplum Fairy Garden but the sled didn't fit right on the patio so I ended up just using the figure alone in
the garden bed. And I'll save the sled for a Valentine's garden instead.
Everything eventually works if you are adaptable! Lol!
- The Plants
The big canopy tree is a Norfolk Island Pine or Araucaria heterophylla. Interestingly enough, this is the SAME Norfolk Island Pine that is from the indoor garden shown in the first Gardening in Miniature book on page 120. AND I reused that SAME indoor mini garden, with some alterations in the understory, for the second Gardening in Miniature
Prop Shop book, on page 66.
Which means that baby Norfolk Island Pine that I bought over 8 years ago is still useable as a miniature tree! :o)
The "big-leafed" ivy running through the garden is a Sugar Vine, Cissus striata, (one of many names apparently.) The grassy plants on the left are Pony Tail Palms (Beaucarnea recurvata I think. They are either babies or a different plant altogether, I've had them for so long, I have forgotten!) And those big lovely succulents are Echeverias - I think it's the 'Perle Von Nurnberg' variety.
- The Maintenance
The pine, pony tail palms and the sugar vine all take the same watering and light needs and I have them under some indoor grow lights for the winter. The succulent will need its roots to dry out completely in between watering sessions to stay happy - AND it might need more light since its planted under that canopy of the Norfolk Island Pine - so I might take it apart after I finish photographing it to save the plants and the ornaments.
- The Insight
If you look closely at the branches just above the figure, you'll see the tips of the Pine starting to brown. I let it get too dry while figuring out the photo. Most of my photo ideas take a couple-few hours to compose but this one I had a bit of a challenge with. I know was the lighted patio that complicated the shot as well as trying to fit that sled I mentioned above into the scene.
I made the lighted patio by laying down the rice lights on the landscape cloth, then used rolled marble pebbles combined with floral glass beads for color.
I'm going to keep trying the fantasy garden idea but include elements that can be kept in the miniature garden instead of just staging it for a photo. I think having a mini garden idea that can stay together for a while is the most fun!
Let me know what you think - just hit the reply!
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