Hand in hand, with fairy grace,
Will we sing, and bless this place.
~William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream

Are there fairies at the bottom of your garden? Do gnomes take shelter from the rain under your mushrooms? Are you enjoying the sights and smells of your spring garden yet? The residents of Gregory Wing, with the help of the garden therapy team from the Boothbay Region Garden Club, have wasted no time ushering in spring with the creation of three distinct miniature gardens that will be welcoming to fairies and gnomes and other nature spirits.

In “Gardening with Nature Spirits,” Theresa Crabtree explains the role of fairies is to maintain balance in the physical world and one way to get in touch with these and other nature spirits is to create beautiful tiny gardens to lure them in. Legend has it that fairies not only bring you good luck but may even grant you three wishes in return for gardens that please them!

To fashion these lovely gardens, the team, along with about eight Village participants, started with three wooden trays lined with bubble wrap that acted as a base for the green moss, simulating grass. The residents were divided into three groups, each working with a different garden theme — a fairy garden, gnome garden and a spring garden. According to Nan Jackson, co-coordinator of the garden therapy team, the real fun began when all the miniatures for the three gardens were unwrapped by the Village crafters-in-residence. “Almost like Christmas! What would they discover?” Fairies and gnomes, tiny houses and mushroom dwellings, farm animals, snails, an owl, and even a dragon and a unicorn. Also flowers and shrubs, evergreens and colorful trees, a pond and a stream, wooden fences and stone benches and trowels and seed packets for planting.

When all was said and done the colorful garden pieces were hot glue gunned in place to craft charming spaces worthy of fairy magic. The tiny gardens are also sure to bring smiles to residents, visitors and staff at the Village.

Garden therapy gives back to the volunteers at least as much as the volunteers contribute to the lives of the Village residents. Join the garden club and become a member or coordinator of the garden therapy team. Volunteering is fun and rewarding! Contact Sandra Abernathy (633-0392) or Alice Schambra (633- 7162) for more information.