Want to do something with all your extra plant babies? Or keen to make a sustainable gift for a friend on the cheap?
Why not give making a Kokedama a go? We help you achieve a Kokedama Crafternoon session in Ten Easy steps.
Kokedama is the Japanese designing of garden art and is not only a beautiful way to display your plants, it’s pretty perfect for those of us who live in small spaces.
Here’s what you will need:
· Peat Moss
· Munash Organics Potting Mix / Or your own potting mix with our Munash Organics Soil Food Added
· Sphagnum Moss
· Natural Twine (fancy name for string)
· Plant cutting such as Devil’s Ivy (but this has to have roots established so make sure you’ve left it in water for a few weeks/months for them to grow) or use a cactus or similar plant with roots already established to transplant
· Scissors
· Baking bowl or similar container such as an ice-cream container
{Recipe mix is ½ cup of peat moss and Munash Organics Potting Mix per Kokedama.}
Ok, let’s get to it…
Step 1:
Combine equal parts peat moss and Potting mix and mix in a bucket. Add enough water so it forms a ball (holding its shape) when you pick it up. Tip : Really really squeeze out the excess water.
Step 2:
Set aside your Sphagnum Moss in another bucket with water and let it soak it up for 10 minutes. Then as above tip : really really really squeeze a handful of it before using each fistful.
Step 3:
Cut two lengths of your twine of 40cm each, and drape them over the bowl (or ice-cream container) so they criss-cross over centre and the ends hang over the bowl edge.
Step 4:
This is where the fun really starts! Line your bowl (ice-cream container) with 2 cm thick sphagnum moss and press it down firmly into your strings.
Step 5:
Grab a handful of the potting mixture with the peat moss combined into the centre of your bowl as a ball in the centre, making sure there is none on the bowl edges.
Step 6:
Grab your plant cutting (or plant you are transplanting from a pot and remove any excess soil), positioning it in the centre of your Kokedama. Add another handful or so of your potting mix & peat moss combination medium around the base to secure your plant.
Step 7:
Fill the bowl entirely now with a mound of sphagnum moss to complete the formation and pat down firmly with your hands as you go, covering the entire growing surface and mounding it up around the plant.
Step 8:
Grabbing your two strings tie with a double knot firmly at the base of your plant.
Step 9:
Tip out your Kokedama from the bowl/ice-cream container, holding tight so it doesn’t fall apart.
Step 10:
Tie on a new string, but do NOT cut it and start winding it around the ball of the new Kokedama a number of times so it is evenly distributed and holding onto the outside Sphagnum Moss surface very well and tie off. Leaving about 1m of twine for a hanger, tie off directly opposite the first tie and cut string. Water and hang up your new creative art piece and marvel at your wizardry.
Handy Care tips :
Kokedamas do best out of direct sunlight, and love a water in the top of where the plant base is, OR remove it entirely and soak in a bucket of water mixed with a very weak dilution of Munash Organics Renew (our liquid feed organic fertiliser plants love) for one minute and rehang up. Water your Kokedama about once a week in summer (moving to every second day in extreme heat) and twice a week in Winter (this will be dependent upon what plant you used – succulents can withhold no watering for longer than common house plants like Devil’s Ivy).
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