The-Artistic-Garden's Blog

Though Peat Moss Is An Important Ingredient
In A Hypertufa Recipe
Will Wood Shavings Prove To Be
An Acceptable Replacement?

I received this email from Sandy who asked:

Hi: I was so excited to find your site. Years ago I read a small article in a magazine about making hypertufa planters. I am so glad I didn’t get around to trying it until now. I wouldn’t have had a clue about half the stuff your website has explained!!

I do have a question for you. In one of your articles you explain about using coir in hypertufa recipes. Is it possible to substitute wood shavings (like the kind for small animal bedding) for the peat moss ? I know it wouldn’t be “true” hypertufa but do you think the results would be satisfactory ? Thanks, Sandy

My reply:
I’m glad you found my site. I hope you will find my projects and recipes to be of great help.

About the wood shavings, I’ve never personally used them myself, but am aware of others doing so. Their success came from what I will share here with you. There are some things to keep in mind when using them, so make note of the following:

—yes you can substitute the shavings for the peat moss–just do not use both in a recipe

—I’ve seen more mention of folks using sawdust as opposed to shavings

—it is suggested to NOT use perlite or vermiculite in a recipe using shavings or sawdust as these also absorb water (which can cause recipe failure)

—do NOT used treated lumber!

—your “shavings” cannot be too large … think of the consistency of peat moss. Many people even go a step further to sift down the peat to use only the finest siftings. Other folks use a blender to pulverize the peat into very very fine pieces if they don’t want one single little lump. So, what I am getting at is you can’t use big shavings. Then again (don’t remember right now the size of pet bed shavings), I highly suggest you first experiment with a recipe using shavings.

—remember that the whole idea of using peat moss is that it decomposes over time, leaving the pits and crevices that real Tufa rock has. The shavings will also decompose over time … so again I come back to the fact that large shavings MAY (notice I say “may”) ultimately leave holes that are too big and ultimately your object will fall apart.

—be very mindful of the ratio of water due to the fact the shavings will absorb a lot of water and in the long run this can goof up the cure and your object will more than likely fall apart . Refer to my page about mixing and such: Mixing Guidelines

—write down your hypertufa recipe’s ratios, etc so that you can see what was correct or what wasn’t correct (successful project versus failure). Keeping notes is really a good idea.

And please review my curing instructions – the correct curing procedure is as vitally important as a properly concocted recipe: Successful Hypertufa Curing Instructions

As I mention all over my website … practice first on smaller objects! And “patience is a virtue”!! You might be successful with your first attempt and then again, you might have to experiment a number of times.

That is about all I can think of right now to share with you for your hypertufa recipe’s success. Good luck!

How Do I Sculpt And Carve Into Wet Hypertufa?

A reader asked:

On your The-Artistic-Garden website under ‘Painting Techniques’ there is a close-up photo showing verdigris colouration. There is a design on the planter. How did you accomplish this?

And, is there any other way to decorate a hypertufa pot except by painting it? Can you draw on it before it cures or somehow sculpture a design on it?

I answered:

Oh yes you can decorate the outside of a ‘tufa pot. The easiest way is to carve or sculpt into it. Just make sure you make the sides of your item thick enough to carve into if you want to produce a really deep textured or carved design.

Or, after it is partially cured, you can add other raised details or embellishments made from a freshly mixed up batch of ‘tufa onto the item. Just make sure to wet down the main item; “paint” on a liberal coat of bonding agent onto the area(s) where you’ll be applying the new ‘tufa pieces; and make sure you’ve added bonding agent into the new batch of hypertufa.

Here’s a page I wrote about sculpting in hypertufa that will give you some more ideas, and a recipe (though you can sculpt in any ‘tufa recipe – just depends on what you’re making, it’s size and such that will determine what recipe might be best for your purposes): Hypertufa Sculptures.

In reference to the raised design on the planter (here’s the photo referred to) – it was already part of the pot.

That planter is one of those polyresin pots – very light-weight but water tight. I love these type of pots as not only can you paint them if you wish, but they are very lightweight because the polyresin is a very lightweight material. This sure makes these pots a little easier to move around once they’re filled with dirt and plants … especially if you are into LARGE pots like I am.

Polyresin pots are great for those of us living in climates that have freezing temperatures, as they can be left outdoors in all seasons without the worry of cracking like almost all real terra cotta pots do (except the very pricey Italian terra cotta).

A Reader Asks About Curing Her Hypertufa Project
During Cold Winter Months

“Beaverlake” asked me:

Your DIY garden art projects website is great!! Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences with us newbies. I made my first hypertufa trough a few weeks ago at a workshop my garden club held. Now my head is spinning with ideas, but now it is so cold outside in the state where I live.

Can I make a hypertufa project in the basement and let it cure there during the winter?

My reply:

Hi Beaverlake:
Thanks for the kind words. I do try to offer easy to follow and thorough info on my website.

To answer your questions:

1) Yes, you can make ‘tufa or concrete items in your basement but first, a little warning – please make sure when you are measuring out the Portland cement that you don’t get the dust all over the place. Cement dust is NOT a nice thing to get tracked all over the place. (Wear your dust mask and gloves too!!)

Next, you MUST have the basement/room temperature above 50 degrees minimum at all times in order that your item cures properly. Below 50 – don’t bother trying a project – it won’t cure. It will take longer to cure, too. So you’ve gotta be patient! 

With a room temperature that’s between 50 – 70 degrees .. the item still will take a little longer to cure. But lots of crafters do ‘tufa projects in their basements, so I’d say go ahead if you don’t want to wait until Springtime.

Good luck!

Beaverlake wrote back:

Thanks for the information. I will start with small hollow spheres next weekend. It’s going to be a long winter. We are having our first snow storm as I type.

Thanks for the information.