Blooming Fairy Trees

It’s spring,  and blooming fairy trees are bursting forth in the miniature gardens!  The majority of trees used in ‘fairy-scaping’ are evergreens such as cypress, junipers, boxwood, cryptomeria and elms.  However, there are  a few flowering exceptions and they’re spectacular!

One of my all time favorites is the double flowered serissa.  With tiny pure white blooms less than 1/2″ across, they give the appearance of a teensy rose or gardenia.  In warmer climates it will bloom all year long, though most heavily spring through fall.  It is slow growing (actually a good thing for miniature plantings!) but patience will reward you with a lovely tree full of aged looking bark and multi branching limbs.  It is equally at home in full sun or bright shade, making this plant a true multi-tasker.

Cuphea or false heather is another beautiful choice for a fairy tree.  It needs atleast 6 hours of sun and will bloom most of the year.  It is heat-loving, so a cold winter can damage the tips if it’s left unprotected.  Even if you are in a colder climate and must treat it as an annual, it’s well worth growing.  Faster than the serissa – a cuphea tree will create a mature profile in one growing season.

For shade, the fuchsia thymnifolia is as adorable as it gets.  Beloved by hummingbirds as well as fairies, these 1/4″  blooms are breathtaking.  Laden with flowers spring, summer and fall – it will even produce a sprinkling of blossoms in winter if grown in warmer areas.

Any one of these blooming fairy trees will give your miniature garden the luscious look of spring throughout the year!