Hypertufa, a lightweight man made material similar to stone, was created as a substitute for the natural rock called Tufa. It is used to make a myriad of garden art objects. Anyone can make hypertufa, it’s really not that difficult. Hopefully, this article will be of some help.
There are a number of different recipes you can use to make hypertufa. You can use various ingredients and different combinations of them. Portland cement, peat moss, sand, perlite, vermiculite, and water are the most common ingredients. The most basic recipe includes Portland cement, sand, and peat moss.
It’s quite amazing what you can do with hypertufa. It’s great for plant containers, pots, planters, troughs, stepping stones, pedestals, columns, leaves, garden spheres, fake rocks and boulders, sculptures, totems, and so on. A great way to spruce up your garden.
Making hypertufa garden items is simple. In reality, it’s not much different than making a child’s mud-pie. For molds you can use various containers, just look around the house – any kind of plastic bowl or container, a cardboard box, wastebaskets, bowls, vases, plates, and so on.
The process is simple. You apply the mixture to the outside of the mold, cover it with a garbage bag and seal tightly. If you’re making planters, don’t forget to add drainage holes. Put it under the sun for about 3-5 days, then carefully remove from the mold. Cover it up again with plastic bag and allow it to cure for about a month. That’s it.
If you’re a beginner, start with something simple and work your way up. This is the best way to learn. Making hypertufa is not much different than making a cake. And you don’t start with a 6-tier cake, do you?
Hypertufa is certainly a wonderful way to spruce up your garden. It’s fun, easy and not expensive to make. And it gets your creative juices going.