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A DIY JULY initiative thanks to BUNNINGS!
Kokedama balls not only look aesthetically beautiful and take up a lot less space than a pot; but they're also a part of an aesthetic called "Wabi-Sabi" - a philosophical understanding of "imperfect, impermanent and incomplete" in nature - abds as a perfectionist I need more of Wabi-Sabi in my life! Plus kokedames have powerfully good "Chi" vibes and who doesnt want good Chi?
As a follow on from my Kokedame post, I was excited to find another kokedama workshop happening at Bunnings Subiaco - and Tia is the BEST! She had so much information prepared for us from history to plants and styles (even incorporating the macrame we did the evening before at a Make and Take!)
After a succesful workshop I felt like I knew where I wanted my Kokedama Kollection to go - EVERYWHERE!!! So I did...
#drumroll ...
Materials
Tools
Now I can wrap! I wanted to experiment with different materials, styles, plants, soils etc.
I used the same materials as I did in my Kokedame post but I also included alternatives and extras such as
- Co-Co liner - to wrap
- Hessian - to wrap
- Floristry wire - to manipulate plant growth
- Coir Peat brick - as soil medium
- Mediums to add such as perlite, charcoal, pinebark etc.
I didnt want to spend much money on plants as I'm only just now understanding how not to kill them - though the jury is still out! To save money I put my hand at propogating!!! Special thanks to friends and family who let me steal their foliage - even if they didnt know it hehe
To further save on buying a rooting hormone I made my own from 2 cups hot water and 1 tablespoon of water - dipping the end in the honey water and then into a bowl of cinnamon!
I wasn't sure if you could propogate in a kokedame ball? But I tried it anyway, I experimented with a few cuttings of my string of hearts cuttings and tubers as they have quite a good success rate for withholding life!
I also used my English Ivy cutting and the Lavendar Scallops becasue they have such a beautiful fall to them!
Then the rest I put in pots until a root has formed. Re-using / scavenging for any pots around the home to help me with the propagation process! My daughter even painted one to "freshen" it up for me! haha
The plants I used in my kokedama balles:
- Devil's Ivy
- English Ivy
- "Tuber" from Chain of Hearts
- Sundew - carnivorous
- Venus Fly Trap - carnivorous
- Nepenthes "pitcher" plant - carnivorous
- Snake plant with hessian
- Strawberry plant with coco husk and floristry wire
- Cacti with coco husk
- Baby Boomer Fern
- Colleus (from my second workshop!)
- Audrey's "frogman" = seed bomb of butterfly and bee mix from sustainable kids workshop
- and many many different succulents that I'm still getting my head around - some include Lavender Scallops, Ghost Plant, Irish Flower, jade plant or elephant bush(?) and many more!!!!
NB* To identify my plants I used an app called PictureThis - subscriptions are available but you get a lot for free!
I'd also love to try Peas! They grew so well from our 'grow your own' workshop that I wonder if they too would look nice in a kokedama ball!!!
Materials
Tools
Now I can wrap! I wanted to experiment with different materials, styles, plants, soils etc.
I used the same materials as I did in my Kokedame post but I also included alternatives and extras such as
- Co-Co liner - to wrap
- Hessian - to wrap
- Floristry wire - to manipulate plant growth
- Coir Peat brick - as soil medium
- Mediums to add such as perlite, charcoal, pinebark etc.
I didnt want to spend much money on plants as I'm only just now understanding how not to kill them - though the jury is still out! To save money I put my hand at propogating!!! Special thanks to friends and family who let me steal their foliage - even if they didnt know it hehe
To further save on buying a rooting hormone I made my own from 2 cups hot water and 1 tablespoon of water - dipping the end in the honey water and then into a bowl of cinnamon!
I wasn't sure if you could propogate in a kokedame ball? But I tried it anyway, I experimented with a few cuttings of my string of hearts cuttings and tubers as they have quite a good success rate for withholding life!
I also used my English Ivy cutting and the Lavendar Scallops becasue they have such a beautiful fall to them!
Then the rest I put in pots until a root has formed. Re-using / scavenging for any pots around the home to help me with the propagation process! My daughter even painted one to "freshen" it up for me! haha
The plants I used in my kokedama balles:
- Devil's Ivy
- English Ivy
- "Tuber" from Chain of Hearts
- Sundew - carnivorous
- Venus Fly Trap - carnivorous
- Nepenthes "pitcher" plant - carnivorous
- Snake plant with hessian
- Strawberry plant with coco husk and floristry wire
- Cacti with coco husk
- Baby Boomer Fern
- Colleus (from my second workshop!)
- Audrey's "frogman" = seed bomb of butterfly and bee mix from sustainable kids workshop
- and many many different succulents that I'm still getting my head around - some include Lavender Scallops, Ghost Plant, Irish Flower, jade plant or elephant bush(?) and many more!!!!
NB* To identify my plants I used an app called PictureThis - subscriptions are available but you get a lot for free!
I'd also love to try Peas! They grew so well from our 'grow your own' workshop that I wonder if they too would look nice in a kokedama ball!!!
Steps
Step 1
1/4I followed a similar technique from my kokedama post except I graduated to NO STOCKING!!!!
Instead I made balls from my soil, poked holes in to fit my plant in. Then wrapped them in spaghnum moss. and twine!
Kokedame Venus Fly Trap
Step 2
2/4
An equal mix of potting mix + Peat Moss Mix (includes charcoal, perlite and pinebark mulch) + Coir Peat + a small bit of slow release fertilizer and... BUNNY MANURE!!!!
After making a ball of soil and spaghnum moss I wrapped my strawberry plant in some ripped up Co-co liner husk (yes, my daughter got to it so I may as well use it!!!)
Then used the floristry wire to "weave" both the husk and the plant together. To create more structure I added a garden stake!
I like the less-twine-wrapped look on this... I feel it gives it a more cottage style!
Step 3
3/4Kokedama Cacti with coco husk and a DIY cacti mix!
I didn't have any cacti soil so I made my own!
2 parts potting mix : 2 parts perlite with small rocks (or gravel stones) : 1 part sand - the coarser the better (I used the sand/dirt outside - I opted for the garden dirt over the sandpit dirt because it was clearly coarser.
Step 4
4/4My snake plant, string of hearts tubers and succulent 'Irish flower' used the same mix = (1:1:1)
Potting Mix : Peat Moss Mix (with charcoal, perlite and pinebark chips) : Orchid Mix
I used hessian to wrap both 
Hello @ehill
Thank you so much for sharing the steps and list of materials for your Kokedama balls. It is a fascinating project, and I've always been curious how big the plants allowed to get before it needs transplanting to a bigger a ball.
Again, thank you for sharing such a wonderful project.
Eric
