Creating a Fairy Haven

[Herne]

I would like to create a place in my backyard which will be very inviting to the good folk. Can anyone offer any suggestions about the sorts of things I should include (or not include) in this haven? What sort of plants should I use (or not use)? Are there things they find offensive or enticing (bird feeders/bird baths, yard ornaments, etc)?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Labrys]

I can't say I am a believer in yard fairies.  But from what the stories say, they don't like anything made of iron.

[Still Kate]

A good many  years ago I went to a fair and purchased some small carved wooden mushrooms from a seller. They were called Faery Mushrooms.
I still have them, even though I ve moved house twice since.
Something like this, with plenty of sweet smelling flowers would create an unusual grotto.
If nothing else it will be a plesant place for yourself to sit and contemplate.

Have fun.
Kate. 

[Zenon]

they say the Fey really like whiskey.

[Ara]

they say the Fey really like whiskey.

Put that out in your yard, and you'll have the local drunks flocking to sit in your back yard!

[Jennie]

I know that you can't be referring to the people of the Sidhe, so I asked a friend who was a bit more familiar with the topic to provide a few suggestions. He was delighted to help. He polled The Data Lounge, and based on that informal research, in addition to his own fairly extensive experience as a member of the target audience, this is what he advises:

First, any garden you are using to attract fairies must be EXCRUCIATINGLY well-manicured. Anything less simply won't do.

Pink lawn flamingos (the really tall ones that look like they're on stilts) are virtually guaranteed to at least get them to slow down and point as they drive by, if not stop and visit.

Try the obvious plants - pansies, lavender, pinks, bachelor's buttons, Queen Anne's lace, gay-feather, fruit trees - you get the idea.

Avoid layouts that are too straight.

A meditation bench facing a fountain topped with a reproduction of Michaelangelo's "David" would be a nice touch.

Put up a Barney's Warehouse Sale sign.

Add a spring brunch, al fresco, with riparian entertainment.

Pipe in a soundtrack composed of show tunes, Madonna, Cher, and Judy Garland.

Serve enough bellinis and mimosas and you'll be picking them up off the lawn for days.

I hope this is helpful.

Oh, wait... did you mean those little English things with the insect wings?

[Labrys]

ROFL.....oooh, I LIKE you!  I knew there was a reason my yard has no "visitors"....no excruciating grooming here!

(Tho' the weekend's planned weeding will BE excruciating to me!)

[Schuylar]

I know this was a legitimate question but I can't help myself.

http://www.urban-fairies.com/index.html

We have fairies all over the place where I live.

[Herne]

Ummm... thanks for the advice guys. It was REALLY useful...

[Arx]

Hehe, Jennie that was hilarious.

Ummm... thanks for the advice guys. It was REALLY useful...

Come on, you have to admit that was pretty hilarious.

In any case, do you really want fey in your backyard? Judging by traditional myth, they aren't exactly the type of things one would want there: spriggans, jenny greenteeth, red caps, bogles, goblins, fir darrig, phouka, bogeymen, trolls and duergar, just to name a few off the top of my head.

Contrary to what modern new age and pagan movements might suggest, fairies weren't something that people liked. The fey were more generally feared more than anything else, and treated more as local land spirits that needed appeasement through offerings and reverance as opposed to cute winged things of love and joy.

That's not to say that there weren't benign fey out there. It's just that you have to remember that fairy/fey is a catch-all term covering nature spirits, spirits of the dead, malicious entities or even gods and goddesses for the more powerful ones.

If you do want them in your garden nonetheless, then it would be safe to avoid the inclusion of anything they dislike. So simply do a google search for those things people used to keep fairies away, and then do the exact opposite *shrugs*.

-Arx-

[Ara]

Apparently, they like ice cream.  There were a few episodes at the store I worked at for a few years that would prove this.

[Bluefish]

Apparently fairies are associated with foxgloves. I imagine they would also like small nodding bells, like lily-of-the-valley or snowflake plants, or bluebells. I think I read somewhere that they like tinkling water and moss and ferns.

I've also read about the association between fey and fungi rings (fairy circles). I remember that fey folk and the fly algaric mushroom are closely linked. But the fly algaric mushroom is toxic if you are silly enough to eat more than a small bit, and likes poor drainage and shade. Which doesn't sound like a garden I'd like sit in, I like my butt being dry and warm

I think you'd probably want to put your fairy garden in a spot that isn't too close to the house since as Arx pointed out, some fey aren't the kind you'd want to have taking up residence in your house.
Sorry I can't give you sources, my naughty brain eats those hee!

[Leigh]

Just to add my two cents they also like Hawthorne trees.  We have one in the back of our yard where we keep the bird feeders and we get mushrooms springing up all the time back there.  It's also surrounded with flowerbeds.  They don't like iron.  You need to keep a healthy respect for them if you're going to invite them into your yard though.  Like the previous poster wrote there are all kinds of fey.

Leigh