Making a Hypertufa Planter From An Old Fire Pit

Kim Smith
by Kim Smith
Hello again! I wanted to show you the hypertufa bowl that I made last fall. It is about 30 inches in diameter, and I have it planted since last fall. Survived nicely. The only problem is it's very heavy and that is a hindrance for me because I constantly like to move things!
I have the directions on the blog post here. But I will let you know the basics. I made this last fall, and planted it then too.
I started with an old rusted fire pit that I found at a garage sale for $1. I thought the bowl would make the perfect shape for a planter.
I made up the cement/peat moss/vermiculite mixture which is hypertufa, and pressed it into the bowl . I made sure to go over the lip so it could sit inside the stand that the fire pit usually uses.
This is the large bowl that I ended up with. It is very heavy and thick. It should last years and years. In Ohio's winter last year, it held up fine.
I have it planted with sedums and succulents which I felt were winter hardy for my zone. The Chinese sedum didn't survive, but I will let that go due to the exceptionally hard winter we had.
This spring, it was nice and I planted a dianthus and a lewisia in it and they bloomed so nicely. I added a little ceramic bird. ( I should have taken a picture when the blossoms were full.)
This is the front garden with some blue ajuga in bloom on the right. It made a pretty vignette for my front entrance. That little path is the path to the water faucet. Hope you like it. I have all the directions for making hypertufa on the website. It is fun, messy, but rewarding.
Kim Smith
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
Go
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
Comments
Join the conversation
3 of 24 comments
  • Dmn30902331 Dmn30902331 on Nov 03, 2017

    tufa deteriorate when watered frequently

    • Kim Smith Kim Smith on Nov 04, 2017
      I don't find that to be true. I have several that are years old and have been outside in rain and snow (plus I water when needed), and I have had no problem. This one is aging but still fine. Thanks.
  • Stacy Petersen Stacy Petersen on Mar 06, 2018

    Thank you for this! I was looking for what to do with a fire pit we can't really use. I have tried succulent gardens ( in the yard) and my chickens ate them! Now I can repurpase the old pit in the garage which has metal a cover i can put on it for protection!!!!

Next