Forget Babylon, let’s all have Floating Gardens!

Somehow, I have managed to fall into every body of water from the Pacific Ocean to the tiniest of puddles.  Call me a klutz but I have always been fascinated by water and how it moves.  Didn’t you play Pooh-sticks as a child, throwing twigs into streams and racing them down the hill? I was that child who always came home drenched, muddy, and happy.

Today, even though I live on an island, I am nestled into a tiny glade in the forest, and cannot see the sea every day.  So I created my own floating garden, nestled into a forest of its own, amongst the pots on my deck.

There are many ways to enjoy a water container, from merely filling it to the brim with water to reflect the sky, to a tiny natural pond.  I am experimenting with them this year as simple, ephemeral, floating floral arrangements.  My inspiration came from Designer Dan Benarcik from Chanticleer Gardens, who arranged floated mandalas in containers.  

Drink more wine

To create this effect, I took an empty ceramic container and spray-painted the interior jet black.  Any paint will do, I am sure, but this affects how light and color reflect. You could paint it aqua just like a mid-century swimming pool.  I chose to mask off the rim to visually define the edge.

Sealing the holes was a larger problem.  I tried several times to use kitchen caulk, the first time being too impatient to let it dry properly, and of course, it didn’t hold water longer than a few hours.  The second time I used caulk and flex seal (As Seen On TV, you can cut this boat in half, my kids mocked gleefully), but still, it sprung a leak to dramatic effect.  

Finally, I bunged a wine cork into the holes and that worked perfectly.  After a week of leaving a floating arrangement, leaving the water to get a bit cloudy, I was glad to have a removable drain plug, so I think I will permanently caulk in one cork, but leave the other as removable.

Let’s talk arrangements.  

Really, the point is that anything will do.  Right now I am experimenting with radially symmetric arrangements, a true circular mandala representing connection and universality.  We sort of need that right now in our covid19 confinement, but maybe I am recreating the crown part of coronavirus.

I start with the largest leaves on my property, which right now are the rhubarb leaves.  I layer them around the outside and then lay foliage with contrasting forms or colors next.  Whatever is blooming becomes the centerpiece, and then I look for small flowers in the lawn to complement the arrangement, scattered randomly because I feel that nothing should look perfect.  Alternatively, you can collect the blooms of zinnias or marigolds (or whatever you have), and float them in random or circular patterns to make your own floating flower arrangements.

These only need last a day or two … long enough for happy hour on the deck, or morning coffee.  I sweep them into the compost bin and cruise the garden with a pair of scissors and a keen eye to see what will work today to amuse me.  Remember, the point is to be seasonal, ephemeral.  Use apples in fall, or hellebores in spring.  Float candles in them for an evening party. Be creative and use what you have.

By bringing them close to the house, you can enjoy them without getting muddy in the garden.  Er, well, I am likely to trip and manage to fall into mine.