You find yourself in Calgary, you are more than welcome to come sit in the garden. One neighbour does that on a regular basis, which is nice since she will water stuff if it looks like it needs it.
When I initially made the ball, I planted the two halves separately. Used regular potting soil and moss to line the cage. Once they rooted in (a couple of weeks) then I ziptied the two halves together. I just pull out hens & chicks from my garden for any replacements and use a wire to hold it in place until the additions root in. Sorry, not sure of the varieties.
