I’ve made well over 1,300 miniature gardens since I started this business six years ago, and I have found that there are a number of ways to begin the journey of creating your own wee world.

Here are some ideas to get you started:

1. Choose your site for your mini garden.

Right plant, right place! Where is it going to live? In ground or in a container? Indoor or out? Then what kind of light does that spot have? Full shade? Morning sun? Then choose the plants that will do well in that environment. (Note that indoor plants are tropical plants that like to stay 60 degrees all year ‘round.)

2. Choose your favorite tree.

If you have the luxury of planting anywhere, checkout the miniature and dwarf trees and shrubs that are ideal for miniature gardening, and pick one that sings to you. Choose your “mini bedding plants” (a.k.a. ground covers) by matching the same light and water requirements as the tree. If you haven’t been bitten by the miniature conifer bug yet, be warned: they are both numerous and gorgeous.

3. Choose your favorite theme.

Forest? Backyard? Formal? Rustic? Re-creating a life-sized garden in miniature? Choose slow-growing, small foliage plants that will help get you closer to the theme your looking for. Use images of life-sized gardens to help kick-start your brainstorming session ~ Google it!

4. Choose a container.

Sometimes the container just beckons to have a wee world in it. Let the colors and the personality of the pot dictate the mini garden theme. An unglazed, terracotta pot might say “rustic backyard garden.” A big, black, glazed, ceramic pot would look smashing with a formal style, blue garden: Blue Pygmy Juniper with Sedum Button and Wooley Thyme. Finish it off with a grey stone patio and wee grey grapevine birdbath. Ooh-la-la!

5. If it still sounds a bit overwhelming try one of my kits.

I have a variety of Miniature Garden Kits in my online store, to suit a number of different environments. They come complete with full color instructions that guide you through the simple steps to create a mini garden in a container, and it can be applied to an in-ground garden too.

The kits come with a mini or dwarf tree, matching bedding plants (ground covers), my own Mini Patio Mix kit, rocks or brick sheets for easy install, and miniature garden accessories to finish off your wee landscape. Once you do this kit, you’ll know how to do it again and again.

Miniature gardens make great gifts for that hard-to-shop for person in your life – like your Mother! Make her Mom’s Day this year by giving her a kit, or a world you’ve put together for her. I know she’ll love it – and love you for it, too!

There are just as many reasons to grow your own world, as there are reasons to live in this one. Enjoy your mini garden journey and adhere to the most important, number one rule of gardening in miniature: Have fun. It’s your world after all.