There is a world of plants in the teeny-tiny category. Dwarf conifers, tiny succulents, diminutive bulbs and alpines, herbs, erodiums and other miniature perennials that easily get lost in the larger landscape.
What better way to show off these floral gems than to pot them up in an old stone trough?
Don’t have an authentic stone trough or sink imported from Europe? You can make a faux one yourself in an hour or so. Called hypertufas, these planters resemble the porous, pumice-like material found in tufa formations in places such as Mono Lake in the eastern Sierras.
Made of equal measures of Portland cement, vermiculite and peat moss, hypertufas provide a perfect environment for many plants because they offer sharp drainage and insulating sidewalls.
They also are easily lifted around the landscape and provide a rugged old stone look to natural settings, especially after they age for a season or so.
You can make a hypertufa planter in a morning. It is a big job, but not a complicated one – there are only a few ingredients. Like anything, the more you make, the better you will get at it.
Ambria Brown, 20, of North Tustin, made her first hypertufa in two hours. Here is how to do it:
Gather supplies:Wheelbarrow
Bucket for water
Shovel or hoe
Rubber gloves
Two plastic garbage bags
Mold
Scrap of plywood
A wheelbarrow is best for mixing concrete and other ingredients. You will need a bucket to add the water. It is critical that you not add too much. Concrete can desiccate your hands, so be sure to wear rubber gloves when mixing the concrete and building the trough.
You will need a plastic garbage bag to cover the mold and a scrap of plywood to work on.
The mold can be made of any sort of plastic that is flexible enough to remove later. A dishpan, large plastic bowl, small trash can or file holder will do the job.
The recipe:Portland cement
Vermiculite
Peat moss
Water
The first three ingredients can be found at your local hardware store. Before you run off to the store, know that a bag of Portland cement weighs about 100 pounds. You might need help getting it to the car and then over to your work area.
Brown guesstimated how much hypertufa material it would take to cover her chosen mold, a file holder. It turned out that filling the wheelbarrow approximately a third full with mix covered the mold, but just barely. Do not skimp on the mix.
She mixed roughly 1/3 Portland cement, 1/3 vermiculite and 1/3 peat moss. She used her hands to crumble all the lumps out of the peat moss and then blended the three ingredients thoroughly in dry form.
Add water slowly. You want your mix to resemble very pasty oatmeal or a somewhat dry papier-mâché. Too much water will weigh down the walls and cause them to collapse.
BuildSet your mold upside-down on the plywood. Cover it with the plastic garbage bag.
Working from the bottom up pat your mixture approximately 2 inches thick onto the form. Fill the gaps, but do not overwork the material.
The corners are the most fragile area of your planter. Make sure they are also a generous 2 inches thick.
When you have covered your form, check to make sure the top (which will be the bottom) is level so the planter will sit evenly on the ground. Use a dowel or finger to poke two to three drainage holes in the bottom.
Cover with another black plastic trash bag for 24 hours.
FinishAfter 24 hours, remove the cover and carefully pull your trough out of its form. Turn it right side up and let it air dry. Use a chisel and wire brush to finish shaping the rim of the trough. Rough up areas where the plastic bag left an impression.
Cure and plantIt is recommended that you let your planter sit and cure for a month or so. But with newspaper deadlines looming, Brown planted her trough after a week.
PlantingBrown used fast-draining cactus mix to fill the container. Then she planted a selection of miniature plants: arum, erodiums, thrift and more from M & M Nursery in Orange.
Contact the writer: cmcnatt@ocregister.com or 714-796-5023.
