Gardening in Miniature

“Look Closely, the Beautiful May Be Small”  Immanuel Kant

Fairy Garden Booth at the Ass'n for Horticulture Professionals
Trade Show in August. Picture courtesy of Holly Scoggins

Two of the fasting growing hobbies in the horticulture world are Fairy Gardens and Railway Gardens. Consumer horticulture writer George Weigel recently noted the phenomenon in his "Trends for 2013" video, which you can view here. Garden Professor Bert Cregg of Michigan State University has also commented on the trend, and recommends this article from Digger Magazine on Railway Gardens.

Scene on a typical 32 mm gauge UK garden railway
Picture Courtesy of Wikpedia Commons

Fellow Garden Professor Holly Scoggins of Virginia Tech attended a trade show in August of this year, and noticed the proliferation of Fairy Garden plants and paraphernalia.  The eXtension Master Gardener blog has a recent post up about some cool conifers that work well in these environments.

Luckily for us, Franklin County Master Gardeners Juanita Kauffman (Fairy Gardens) and Bob Hyatt (Railway Gardens) have been enthusiasts for the hobbies for several years now, and have put together a workshop to share their knowledge with the public. Come to the Saturday, January 12th workshop from 9:00 - 11:00 a.m. to learn proper selection, care and maintenance of dwarf, compact, slow and low-growing, or tiny-leaved plants best suited for miniaturized landscapes, as well as general information about these fast growing hobbies.  The fee is $10.00. Contact the Extension Office at 263-9226 to register.

Pinus banksiana 'Uncle Fogy' Taltree Arboretum (Indiana)
Photo credit: Foy Spicer

Locally, Appalachian Nurseries, a wholesaler of landscape trees and shrubs, also has a retail business specializing in dwarf, or small leafed, slow growing plants for use in these miniaturized gardens and landscapes.

And the Mainline Hobby shop in Blue Ridge Summit caters to the model railroading marketplace.

Update:  Click to see pictures of Bob's Railway Garden.