For plantsmen a garden is somewhere to grow things, for busy nine tofivers it’s the place to unwind - yet we shouldn’t forget its potential to raise the value of property.

Then there’s the role it can play in introducing children to nature - and the newest arrival at the Garden Exhibition Centre at Kilquade, Co Wicklow addresses this.

The Fairy Dell is a recreation of Sheena Vernon’s award-winning Show Garden for Bloom 2008. It was sited in a glade of mature yews in the Phoenix Park. ‘‘As I subsequently discovered, it was known to generations of local children as the Fairy Glade,” Vernon said.

Her idea was to get children to use their imaginations, but what came as a surprise was the response from the adults.

‘‘A lot of them said it took them back to their childhood and the games they used to play, because fairy folklore was so active in Irish society,” she said.

At Kilquade it has been sited in an existing poly tunnel, making it an all-year-round space. Given these circumstances Vernon couldn’t recreate an Irish woodland, but what has been achieved is a sense of anticipation that the visitor is coming into a special place. It’s a little bit mysterious, with overhanging trees - including a mimosa that, in spring, is a cloud of sunshine yellow blooms. Underfoot there’s a soft carpet of leaf litter.

There are moss-covered logs, the sound of running water and that unmistakable woodland aroma.

Central to any fairy dell is, of course, the fairy tree. A lone hawthorn is the traditional Irish fairy tree but, this not being a practical option, Vernon has used a corkscrew hazel (Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’) with its curious, gnarled twigs.

Vernon’s other plantings include beech, alder (a species that dates from prehistory), ferns and, for a jungly effect, tree ferns that create a lush, woodland ambience. To encourage people of all ages to look at the architecture of trees, bales of straw scattered around allow visitors to lie down and see things from a different angle.

Local wildlife includes the occupants of the Wishing Well, who came about entirely by accident. ‘‘A plant we put in the water must have had fish eggs, so now we have a pond filled with goldfish,” Vernon said.

Naturally, you can’t have a Fairy Dell without fairies. Here it would have been easy to slip into kitsch, but Vernon has chosen 17 handcrafted copper sculptures by Alice Calhoun. These blend in beautifully with the foliage, making ‘hunt the fairy’ a treat for the young.

Tucked away in a corner is the haunt of the Pooka, the most vicious of all little folk. ‘‘He’s particularly active at Halloween, the most important date in the fairy calendar. At this time of year, fairies are crossing the land to go back underground for winter.

‘‘They are hungry, so it’s traditional to leave out food - a treat for them. If they don’t find a treat, they’ll play a trick on you, hence the origin of the Halloween custom ‘trick or treat’. When children knock on your door, it’s called ‘doing a Pooka’,” she said.

At Kilquade, the Fairy Dell occupies a 20 metre by 10 metre space, but it is possible to recreate the concept on a five metre squared plot, with or without a poly tunnel.

‘‘What’s important is to create a comfortable sense of enclosure with a bit of mystery and a link to the past - it’s a fact that the place human beings feel safest in is a cave.

‘‘These days, children spend far too much time indoors - we should encourage them to open their eyes to the natural magic of a woodland.”

Vernon is currently working on her garden for Bloom 2009.

‘‘The challenge I’ve given myself is designing it on a budget of €2,500. I’m calling it Chic & Cheery - Gardening While the Tiger Sleeps.”

Garden Exhibition Centre, Kilquade, Co Wicklow; www.gardenexhibition.ie Sheena Vernon Garden Design, 01–2859066; e-mail sheena@rvalimited.com www.rosdrinkwater.com

Garden Diary

April 22, 8pm:New and Exciting Woody Plants, RHSI lecture by Jimi Blake of Hunting Brook Gardens; Wesley House, Leeson Park, Dublin 6; admission (non-members) €7; 01- 2353912; www.rhsi.ie April 25 & 26, Ballyvolane House, Castlelyons, Co Cork:

two-day garden seminar by Brian Cross, whose own garden, Lakemount, has been described by the Royal Horticultural Society as ‘‘the flagship of Irish gardens’’.

Price of €560 per person includes two nights’ accommodation, meals and minibus transport to garden visits; to book, call 025-36349 or e-mail info@ballyvolanehouse.ie