Hypertufa ProjectsWhat to Make, and How to Make it With HypertufaAs one of the most rustic crafts you can imagine, hypertufa has taken the gardening world by storm.There are many recipes used for hypertufa projects, and most work very well to make a rustic hypertufa trough, functional or plantable hypertufa bird bath, and many hypertufa pots for your favorite drought smart plants. As a very forgiving type of material, the mixture of cement powder, peat moss, sand and perlite is an easy choice for hypertufa projects that pay big dividends in the garden. Hypertufa projects run the gamut from tiny jewel like pinch pots to troughs and paving stones. See the tutorial on the right of the page for detailed information on making hypertufa pinch pots. Many garden accents can be made with this rustic form of faux rock, and aged with a mixture of sheep manure and buttermilk to promote the formation of moss and lichen; they are indistinguishable from the real thing. See this page for more ways of how to make hypertufa look old. Hypertufa is actually derived from the real rock, called ‘tufa’, a soft limestone that many alpine plant specialists have used for years as a planted focal point for succulents and other rock garden plants. Realizing the potential for making other containers and troughs for their favorite plants, they devised a method and many recipes to make their own hypertufa. Planted with rare hardy succulents such as Rosularia, Jovibarba and Orostachys, as well as other tiny alpine plants they make special displays for your xeric garden.
Here are some hypertufa projects that may interest you: See also these pages for information on making your hypertufa project: For my garden, I can’t think of a better style of container material than hypertufa. Somehow, it goes together with hardy succulent plants like a hand in a glove, and with a match like that, you can’t ever have enough planters, troughs or pinch pots made from hypertufa.
Is Hypertufa on your Mind?Do you dream in mud? Like to make unique and rustic containers, pots and accents for your garden? Share it! Get Inspired......see what other artisans are building with hypertufa...
My Take on Hypertufa
A snippet from my white paper: “My Take On Hypertufa” Hypertufa Hands Well, these are a funny little project - hypertufa hands made from (what else?) surgical gloves and your favorite hypertufa or soil cement mix. I tried ...
Removing the pot for Hypertufa faces
About Hypertufa:
It Isn’t Great But It’s Green
Back when I was in the “old” U.S. Army, just before rocks turned hard, I saw empty Tabasco Sauce bottles used as toothpick holders. Garden Lady Beetle (re-purposed bicycle helmet) This is how I made the lady beetle from a bicycle helmet, a food strainer, two sections of fireplace screen, some scrap steel rods, and two 1/2 glass marbles.... Hypertufa Bird Cage Planter Always one to find rustic salvage wherever I go, now I have my husband looking too - he picked up a really nice bird cage at the recycle center - I use ... Hypertufa Sphere I've been struggling with this project for quite a while, but finally managed to produce less of a sphere, more of an egg - so it's a dinosaur egg! Now ...
Hypertufa Rhubarb Leaf
I wanted to make a formed rhubarb leaf in hypertufa - I've seen these used in a water feature, and so I've tried it here. Hypertufa Faces I've just got back into making hypertufa after a long time absent - and I'm wondering why I left it so long! I grow lots of Sedum, Sempervivum, Jovibarba ...
|
Hypertufa Pinch Pot Tutorial
Building hypertufa pots is a bit challenging - start small with some hypertufa pinch pots to make a charming display filled with tiny Sedum, Sempervivum and Jovibarba, or some of the many beautiful diminutive alpine plants.
Sifted peat moss to remove any larger debris - this can be a higher proportion - up to 1.5 parts.
Perlite - this can be a higher proportion - up to 1.5 parts.
Portland cement powder
You can also add builders sand, or sandblasting slag for stronger mix, for larger items especially. There are many different recipes - some call for sifting the peat moss to a very fine powder, or add fiberglass reinforcing fibers. Experiment until you find your perfect recipe.
Plant your precious little pots with your favorite succulent plants or alpines, or even moss.
See these pages for more:
How to Make Hypertufa
Hypertufa Pots
Hypertufa Container
How to Make Hypertufa Look Old
