Fairy Garden

Nearly a dozen 4-H'ers took on a small project with big potential Wednesday morning as they learned how to build and grow their own fairy garden.

The workshop was held at Sidney Feed and Supply, located at 418 Illinois St., under the direction of its manager Wanda Talich.

"It's a brand-new project for the 4-H kids," Talich said. "It's the first year that they'll have fairy gardens entered into the state fair."

Talich, going my the name "Tinkerbell Talich" and wearing a set of antennea on her head, guided the 4-H'ers through the process of creating a fairy garden.

"They're just miniature gardens," Talich said. "They can even be things like a tree stump in your backyard that you fabricate some windows and a little door to put there."

Talich said fairy gardens are popular not just with children, but adults as well.

"Actually, there are more adults that are really getting into it, so we're trying to plant the seed and keep it going," she said.

Talich said Sidney Feed and Supply sells the plants used in fairy gardens, which include miniature flowers that bloom vividly and drought-resistant succulents.

"A lot of (succulents) do flower, also, but they are more rubbery," Talich said. "But they are living plants."

Talich said almost all fairy garden plants prefer indoor conditions.

"They enjoy sunshine from across the room," she said. "Outside, they're going to get beat up."

Also on-hand during the workshop were Denise Spath, Eleanor Plummer and Brenda Noel with the Imagine That craft supply store located at 1026 Illinois St.

"They have a lot of things that you can add to your fairy garden," Talich said. "So we're just throwing out a lot of ideas. We want the kids to be as creative as possible."

"We're thrilled to be a part of this," Spath said.

The workshop began with the 4-H'ers filling pots and planters they brought with them with available soil before selecting the plants they wanted to have in their fairy garden. Once planted, they then spent some time decorating their garden, using pre-made houses or crafting their own from discarded plant containers and styrofoam.

"We gave them all kinds of materials to use," Talich said. "4-H is all about being creative. It's endless what they can do, and that's what we're hoping for."

Peyton Sprenger, 9, had big ideas for her miniature fairy garden, including crafting a house of her own design.

"The fairy needs to have a place to live," Sprenger said.

Sprenger, a member of the Sidney Wranglers 4-H club, said she had fun with the project and plans to take care of her fairy garden through the summer months, but is not sure yet if she will show it in the county fair.

While not yet part of the 4-H, eight-year-old Rhemy Hicks of Potter also took part in Wednesday's workshop. Hicks, who has experience with fairy gardens, said she enjoys the creativity it allows.

"I like that we are doing this on our own, and not having to do what other people are doing," she said. "I like to make fairy houses, and put a lot of them outside."

Hicks said the garden she made at the workshop will be kept inside, but she has just started creating one outside her home for the summer as well.

"They're a lot of fun," she said.