Many adults have fond memories of getting down and dirty as children, entertaining themselves for hours “cooking” mud pies. The recipe was simple: water and dirt. After mixing, the “dough” was patted into plastic margarine dishes, old plates, jar lids, actual pie pans or anything else handy. Part of the fun was decorating the creations with leaves, berries, pebbles, sticks, flower petals — whatever happened to be available.
Alas, the mud pies quickly dried and crumbled. The mud-pie years were just as fleeting. But there’s a way to re-create that messy fun on an adult level: hypertufa. With hypertufa — a mixture of Portland cement, peat moss, perlite, sand and water — it’s possible to play in the mud, but end up with durable, long-lasting containers and decorative items for the yard or garden.
See Saturday’s Arkansas Democrat-Gazette to learn how to master this simple technique.