Search site

Stoney Ground Herbs

Beautiful, strong herbs for NZ gardeners and herbalists of all levels

  • Home
  • About
  • Herb plants
    • Basil Mint
    • Bergamot, Scarlet
    • Bergamot, Wild
    • Borage
    • Catnip
    • Chamomile, German
    • Chamomile, Roman
    • Clary Sage
    • Elder, Black
    • Feverfew
    • Lemon Balm
    • Motherwort
    • Mugwort, Chinese
    • Peppermint, Chocolate
    • Peppermint
    • Rue
    • Sage, Common
    • Sage, Purple
    • Self Heal
    • Soapwort
    • Southernwood
    • St John’s Wort
    • Sweet Violet
    • Thyme, creeping
    • White Sage
  • Dried herbs
    • Catnip, Nepeta cataria
    • German Chamomile, Matricaria Recutita
    • Lemon Balm, Melissa officinalis
    • Lemon Verbena, Aloysia citriodora
    • Motherwort, Leonurus cardiaca
    • Nettle (Lesser), Urtica urens
    • Peppermint, Mentha x piperita
    • Sage, Salvia officinalis
    • Self Heal, Prunella vulgaris
    • Yarrow, Achillea millefolium
  • Ordering Your Plants
  • Maramataka Māori
  • Blog

Elderly Kokedama

May 4, 2021 By SandRa Timmins Leave a Comment

Really, this is a blog post about how I don’t have time to do a decent blog post! Personal life (as apposed to business life) is at full stretch this month.

So here’s some pictures of what happens to kokedamas’ as they age…

Two year old kokedama
This is the very first kokedama that I made two years ago! It’s a goldfish plant, obviously has a small root system as I’ve only had to restring it once (and not add moss)

Two year old kokedama
This wee guy is around the two year mark too…see those roots?

succulent kokedama
He’s actually seemingly happy to wrap his roots around the ball, despite that I have re-mossed and strung him up twice now

Old kokedama
Last year I made Chrysanthemum kokedamas’, they looked gorgeous but didn’t sell, seems people didn’t dig flowering indoor plants. I plonked this one in my garden, the moss and string is slightly falling off but the roots have gone down, the plant has shot up and it looks like it will flower by mother’s day!

Crazy hair Kokedama
The ever popular crazy hair kokedama! The moss is going slightly green (I like that) the string going brown, they’re all natural products this is what you should expect to happen. Eventually that string will start falling off. I may wait till it’s easy to come off then re-string or I might just re-string over it…haven’t decided yet.

Old kokedama
Sometimes plants die. sad but true, it happens to the best of us. But all is not lost! Dig out what you can from the top of the kokedama, just enough to make space for the root system of another plant..

Elderly kokedama
That’s what I did with this one. If you have any succulents around they don’t mind going into old dry soil. This string of pearls is more happy here than what it was in it’s pot, and the kokedama is happy because now it’s supporting another plant!

So take care y’all, remember indoor plants need less watering during the winter months. Number one killer is too much love! If you have kokedamas, let them dry out completely before soaking.

I will be back for next months (Haratua) Maramataka Māori gardening guide, hopefully before the New Moon! Oh, and keep your eyes peeled, working in the background are some busy beavers and I believe I’m going to be having a new website soon-ish!! I’ve been wanting a new website that is a bit easier to navigate to find plants and relevant information and my wishes might be coming true, whoop whoop!!

Filed Under: Indoor Plants, Kokedama, Pretty Pictures Tagged With: chrysanthemums, crazy hair, Goldfish plant, Kokedama, kokedama as they age, old kokedama, string of pearls, succulents, what to do with kokedama

Mid Winter Xmas Market

July 14, 2020 By SandRa Timmins Leave a Comment

Happy Matariki everyone! Hope you are doing lovely things with your whānau, remembering loved ones that have crossed over and excited about the new year…

If you’re not sure what Matariki is about, click here to find out more

I’m a little excited about this coming weekend because I’m going to be at a market and I NEVER have done a market at this time of year. The lovely little township of Greytown is currently having having a mid-winter Christmas celebration these school holidays and us regular stall holders at the Greytown Country Market are having a market this Saturday, the 18th July at the Town Hall.

photo courtesy of https://www.greytownvillage.com/

I will have a small selection of herbs (a lot of my herbs go to ground at this time of year) as well as freshly made kokedama for your indoor pleasure. I may even have some Chicken Winter Booster blends available.

kokedama will be for sale at the Greytown Market this Saturday, the 18th July 2020
An example of kokedama

Would absolutely love to see your shining faces, if I don’t know you please introduce yourself! If anyone whom has previously bought a kokedama off me and want it to have a tickle up give me a heads up and I’ll bring some gear with me and I can do it there.

Looking forward to it!

Filed Under: Kokedama, SGH updates, Uncategorized Tagged With: Greytown Festival of Christmas, herbs, herbs for sale, Kokedama, market on 18th july 2020, Matariki

Hang! That’s a nice Kokedama!

November 5, 2019 By SandRa Timmins 2 Comments

The naturalisation process of kokedama, how to look after your kokedama.
Rex begonia in kokedama finery

So, what is this kokedama that I keep going on about?

Kokedama is a Japanese art form like how bonsai is. “Koke” means moss and “dama” means ball (or jewel). Japanese dictionary.

苔玉

A plant has its roots surrounded by a soil medium then it is wrapped in sphagnum moss and bound by twine. The plant can then be hung or placed on a special dish or structure.

Corkscrew rush (Juncus effusus "Spiralis") kokedama
Corkscrew rush (Juncus effusus “Spiralis”) kokedama

They look stunning, they’re eco-friendly (as long as the sphagnum moss has been sustainably harvested and no peat has been used in the soil medium. That’s a tick and a tick for me and I even use fair trade organic hemp for my twine) and more often than not they contain houseplants for, obviously, inside. If you don’t know how much of a good thing that is, you need to read my article here on indoor plants.

how to look after your kokedama.
Bird’s nest fern getting a misting

Kokedama are super easy to look after too. To know when to water your plant you just check the weight of the ball, when it feels light it’s time to water. You water by placing your kokedama in a bowl or sink of water that comes about half way up the ball. Let it soak it up for about 10-30mins, then take it out and squeeze the ball, let it drain a bit then hang back up! A lot of plants like a bit of misting here and there, ferns especially. You can mist the ball too in-between waterings’.

how to look after your kokedama.
Happiness

Things can get hairy. Literally. A soft sort of white down can appear on your ball. This is really quite normal and will not harm any person or pet. You can rub it off next time you water it and maybe look at how much air circulation your kokedama is getting.

The naturalisation process of kokedama, how to look after your kokedama.
It’s all natural baby!

The sphagnum moss may start greening up too. It’s all part of the naturalisation process. The twine will eventually degrade and roots may appear through the moss. But by this time (1-2 years we’re talking) the roots will be holding the shape of the ball, it’s not going to all fall to pieces!

The naturalisation process of kokedama, how to look after your kokedama.
Green is the new black…

So what to do… you can wait to see what happens, it will eventually build its own little eco-system and come out the other end looking beautiful, or you can put another layer of sphagnum moss over the ball and re-twine it or staple in pieces of fancy/wild moss over the “unsightly” bits.

Whatever the case, they are worth it for the pleasure that they can give you as well as their aesthetic and architectural presence in your home, patio, courtyard or deck.

The naturalisation process of kokedama, how to look after your kokedama.
Lavender kokedama for outdoors.

At the moment I’m only selling my kokedamas at markets. Just need to work out packaging and how to make sure I have plants available online as well as at my markets. I’d love to know if you would be interested in purchasing kokedama off me, let me know through the comments section or the contact form on the right~

Filed Under: Care and Maintenance, Gardening Styles, Kokedama, Uncategorized Tagged With: how to look after your kokedama., Kokedama, kokedama for sale nz, rex begonia, sustainable house plants, The naturalisation process of kokedama

Coming Near You Soon!

November 1, 2019 By SandRa Timmins 3 Comments

Corkscrew rush (Juncus effusus "Spiralis") kokedama
Corkscrew rush (Juncus effusus “Spiralis”) kokedama

We had a an imposed computer free week this past week (it spontaneously broke, as computers do and had a bit of a wait for a replacement). It felt a lot longer than a week! We have our phones of course which are pretty clever (and now I’m on Instagram!) but there are a few things that are easier (or preferred) to do on the computer. Emailing, updating website, listening to music! I’m one of those people that find it hard to concentrate if I don’t have music on, I’m sure I’m not the only one…. Eh?

Fortunately it’s a busy time of year and have been occupied with plenty to do, from the mundane (but satisfying) weeding to having a stall at various markets. This weekend I’m at Te Horo Country Market on the 3rd November. Kapiti people, I’m looking forward to seeing your faces again!

I’m away in Australia the next week for my brothers wedding. It’s in NSW where their temperature lows have been our highs, hoo-wee, wish me luck in avoiding heat stroke!

Soon after I get back I’m at Woodvilles’ Mad Hatters Market, should be fun, 17th November is the date. I’ll have all my selection of herbs, plus dried herbs and my new product, kokedama.

My kokedama has been getting a really good reception. It’s about 50:50 of people that have seen kokedama before. So I’m guessing that 50% of you that are reading this may not of come across kokedama either. So please read my next article and I’ll tell you all about it.

Goldfish plant (Hypocyrta tropicana) hanging kokedama in my sons room
Goldfish plant (Hypocyrta tropicana) hanging kokedama in my sons room

One thing that I’ve been absolutely loving is how it attracts children (except when they start batting the hanging ones around!). Most kids just walk on by my stall, plants, boring. But hanging balls of plants makes them stop… “Oh, wow, cool!”…..”Oh, wow, is it a pineapple?” All fun!

So, hope your garden is getting into the spring swing of things, the weeds aren’t getting too tall and you can feel that summer vibe coming~

White sage, purple sage and climbing rosemary

Filed Under: SGH updates, Uncategorized Tagged With: corkscrew rush, Goldfish plant, Hypocyrta tropicana, Kokedama, new zealand, stoney ground herbs markets, Te Horo Country Market, woodville mad hatters market

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Stay up to date with blog posts and announcements here!

You can also follow me on…

  • Facebook
  • Instagram

Beautiful, strong herbs
for gardeners
and herbalists
of all levels.

Grown
with passion
and persistence.

Categories

  • Animals (4)
  • Care and Maintenance (45)
  • Gardening Styles (37)
  • Herbal Lore (20)
  • Herbs in Use (23)
  • Indoor Plants (2)
  • Kokedama (3)
  • Maramataka Māori (13)
  • Moving Gardens/New Gardens (12)
  • Pretty Pictures (16)
  • Recipes (8)
  • SGH updates (40)
  • Tomatoes (11)
  • Uncategorized (28)
  • White sage (9)

Contact/Inquiries

    Your Name (required)

    Your Email (required)

    Your Message

    Friends

    Becoming Healthy Ltd NZ

    Supporting Busy People Becoming Healthy

    · Copyright © 2022 · Great websites for great ideas - Help Me Net NZ ·