Concrete & Hypertufa Leaf Fountain Making Tips
A Reader Asks Construction Questions About A
Decorative Cast Leaf Fountain
I received an email from Jan R. asking me:
Hi there, I want to make a hypertufa leaf or concrete leaf fountain. After the leaves are made how would I form the fountain and to what? Got any ideas? Thank you for your time.
Sincerely, Jan
My reply:
Hi Jan:
Thank you for contacting me about making a concrete or hypertufa leaf fountain, which is a fun project to do. The answer to your questions will be rather difficult ones to answer at this point, as you’ve not told me how the leaves are to catch and/or collect the water; how many levels you want; or what sort of base you want the fountain to set on, to name a few.
Make sure you read through the ins and outs of working with hypertufa and concrete for leaves. Here are a couple of articles on my website that will be of help: Leaf Casting with Hypertufa: Tips for Success, and Concrete Leaf Casting: Super Tips From the Pro’s.
There are many variables I’d have to know in order to walk you through this, but basically here is what I believe will help you think this project through:
- Most crafters make two or three leaves set in a tiered fashion, and at angles to each other, which allows the water to spill over the edge(s) and finally collect in the bottom leaf.
- Joining all the pieces can be accomplished by mixing up a fresh batch of your recipe with bonding agent included in it and some bonding agent also painted onto the areas of where everything will be joined for good measure. (You would have to wait until the leaves were cured enough to be handled before you start joining them.)
- You need to seal the concrete or hypertufa leaves with a water-proofing sealant.
- You need to know how to install a simple pump in order to get the water flowing back up to the top-most leaf; you also need to get a pump that has the right GPH rating to effectively keep the water flowing.
- Another consideration – WHERE are you going to hide the pump and cords? Inside the base, or …? I wouldn’t think you want the pump and connections visible.
- You will need a GFI electrical connection available to plug in the motor for the pump. **There’s no side-stepping this requirement – water + electricity do NOT mix!
To learn about GPH and GFI, read this article on my website. Skim about half-way down: Garden Spitters Installation: GPH & GFI Considerations.
This is as specific as I can be for you at this time as I’ve no clue as to what actual shape/form you want your fountain to have. Nor how large you foresee the thing to be. What kind of leaves do you plan on using? Huge gunneras or something medium sized?
But, I do hope these tips help get you to thinking and sketching your ideas out on paper. Though not the easiest project, it is quite doable. Obviously your creative skills will really come into play with a project like this!
Good luck. I really hope you are successful with this leaf fountain project … personally I think there’s nothing nicer than the sound of trickling water in my garden.


