Does anyone know how these are made?
http://ourlittleacre.blogspot....

Are they the sedum balls made wire wire baskets and coco coir linings filled with dirt and then partially sunk into the ground?

I would love to do this.

Neat! I'd like to try something like that.

What a great idea!

What a great idea!

Boy do I love that. Wonder if you could take large wire basket, lined with core and filled with soil, place a piece of plywood over it and turn it upside down. Like you do a pineapple upside down cake. : )

Or place the core lined basket top down, and fill through a hole in the bottom, then plant?

Just came across this. I've seen these too and have been trying to figure out for several weeks now how to make one. Couple of things I'm trying to figure out:

-They would take a huge amount of potting mix. Would like to put something inside to take up some of that space.
-How do you keep the potting mix from settling in such a large "container". I worry that after a few months the mix on top of the ball might have sunk away from the outside.
-I would want to be able to turn it so it gets sun all around or one side might not grow as well.

Have you come up with any ideas Tabby? If so, would love to hear them!

They appear to be in an area where they get full sun. Wonder if the ball could be placed on a platform with wheels? Still thinking about the soil problem.

Building a sphere: Would this method work?
http://www.apartmenttherapy.co...

Thanks for the link Lynn. That is exactly along the lines of what I decided to try. In fact, I had even ordered some sphagnum moss yesterday!

Here's what I came up with. I'm going to make a giant chicken wire ball with several layers of chicken wire. We have bags of those styrofoam peanuts at work, and I'm going to fill the ball with those (not the kind that dissolve with water! ) I'm going to cover the chicken wire with a thick layer of sphagnum moss, about 3" thick, and that's it. I'm not using any potting mix. I figure there isn't any potting mix in the wreaths I make, so I probably won't need any for the giant ball. After all, the roots will probably never get totally through the sphagnum moss anyway. And it's not like it will have to support any weight besides the plants. Like the wreaths, I'll just water it with a Miracle Grow solution every month or two. I'm going to put it in an area of the garden where it should get full sun and figure (hope) that it probably won't need turning. So, think that'll work?

Good ideas coming here.

I was thinking about packing it hard with the native clay to hold it's shape, but I like the idea of something that won't dissolve over time like those peanuts. Or I could cut up one of my many styrofoam medicine boxes. I finally saw some wire baskets with core in them for a good price.

Oh I would love to do those succulent balls! Very intriguing!! I also looked around the 'net and I saw this article....though I think with the overall weight, it is best to keep it stabilized on a big pot as it matures further, but while still in developing stage, it can surely be hanging.

http://www.drought-smart-plant...

a lovely project... so earth like ... they will be nice to take on the ship to remember it...
you might need some thicker rods or wire to keep it's shape if it was big.. particularly on the bottom 1/2 of it.
how big are you figureing you'd make it..
another thought is to use the rigid styrofoam broken up into pieces... rots love it as there's cracks and fizures in the foam.. it holds a bit of water and the roots grow into it quite well.. I use it in me planters and find the roots growing through it all the time I even saw a passiflora in a foam planter that had it's roots growing through the 1 1/4" foam in dozens of places.. broken up in my pots it anchors the roots to this big burried lump that has to pull it's self through the soil to dislocate the plant.. like a deadman ....where you'd burry a log with a rope attached to secure a tent in sand or snow.. in the sphere it would hold some water for the roots and also help anchor them.. the peanuts are almost sealed on the surface and aren't made up out of lots of tiny spheres pressed together with cracks like the other foam
you coul save on the plants if you had alot of it blue.. and recreated the continents.. I should do one.. thanks

here's some more planted balls.. and other forms

Oh my goodness. Where is that?

Wow, those are huge!

OH.. I'm not sure just where they are ... it's part of a compilation of a facebook person I thik in Russaia... seems to be growing displays from around the world.. lots done in flowers... and some just sedums... topiatry and other sculpted growth...
go to it and then advance through 160 or so of them
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pho...

Here's a recent picture of the one on my site that's getting all the attention:



I used Sunshine Mix #4, and as I packed it solid, it hasn't settled. However, I did another one, and didn't pack it as hard, and immediately it looked like it wanted to settle a bit.

I like the styrofoam idea, I'll have to try that.

I'm guessing that it works best if you use two baskets and do an entire sphere, then sink part of it rather than use one basket for 1/2 a sphere and plop that on the ground. Am I right?

Guess that would depend on what shape you want to end up with. I think both shapes have their advantages.

Hi BlueFox. It is so good to see you, missed you.
You have really been busy. How did the plants fare through this last winter?
What big projects do you have going this year?

I have a couple of baskets I got on sale last fall that I am going to use for building a succulent ball. My daughter gave me a box of non melting styrofoam peanuts that I'm going to use in the middle. I'll also do as Blue Fox said, stuff the potting mix tight. The baskets are already lined with coir.