![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmSuUYc4Tya9s4X7RzvkrWZKXVWhi9ANbK1sMkj21gLLmY/img_20221215_130959.jpg)

What do you do when you have  too many rocks strewn around? All I can think of is to create a bonsai landscape. I have been creating a few lately and I have kind of run out of bonsai trays. My budget doesn't allow me to buy anymore this month and with talks of the world economy heading for a depression I am going to save my pennies. Jokes aside bonsai ceramic trays are really expensive so I will not be buying anymore anytime soon. 

![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmbBtJYjrbbot3W1DLiBvuZmMExYAjTJ4mnzsUF7YqPfAh/img_20221111_094704.jpg)

I had a bunch of rocks I collected on a trip to a coffee estate by a river a couple of years ago. The rocks were nothing special but they were very heavy and had a red tinge to them, it was their iron content that made me collect them in the first place. I generally use them around my bonsai plants for support until the trees take root and hold on to the tray. Wiring isn't my thing as I have mentioned before, but I do wire once in a while. 

![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmTHJAtcTLFPjNNgcwexF3umjQ6VkGRpKogCnUtpzGpaZr/img_20221107_124358.jpg)

These rocks were kind of too big for the tray I had, but decided to use them anyway as the smaller rocks I had wouldn't work for the design I had in mind. Either way, I couldn't find any other use for these rocks so I decided to put these to good use.

![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmQzbNej4fJxmaCGR52R7sePTswtBx6gtEKsNpHpsRUED9/img_20221215_113316.jpg)

I chose a jade plant for this project. A small jade which I thought would fit in nicely, nonetheless the 'small jade' wasn't all that small and had to be moved around many times to fit the final design. 

Sorry I forgot to take pictures of the tiny bits of moss I collected

I needed moss and getting moss here is very hard. I had to hunt around for moss all over my garden and found small bits and pieces with which I tried to give the rocks an authentic look. It would have been great if I could have found some more moss but working with limited resources has always been more fun.
 
![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmaEitN9ea5wdmEuGC3SWbaG84KhzrRAVHokpYwDEVyqcX/img_20221215_115950.jpg)

With a small twig of ornate grass and some sedum (golden moss) which always comes in handy for such projects I set to work. Manipulating the space in the small tray took some time, a few trails and loads of patience. I also couldn't get the rocks to work together easily.

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I wanted layers of rocks with a tunnel kind of arrangement for my landscape. I tried various combinations before I decided on one. I used an epoxy sealant (used to fix kitchen/batroom plumbing) to fix the rocks together. I let them dry for over 48 hours as we have been having rain which refuses to let up.  Once the rocks were fixed nicely I started to work on the landscape per say. 

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After a few attempts I was able to fix the tree and the rocks in a manner that would give me some space to create a cave. The next task was to create some steps in the foreground just to add some interest. The initial plan was to create the steps around the cave, but space being a huge constraint I decided to work around the problem.  

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I arranged the moss on the rocks, but this wasn't all that easy, the moss kept falling off as the soil below was kind of coarse. I decided to use a layer of clay paste on the rocks to help the moss adhere to the surface and this finally worked. 
The last step was to arrange the grass and the sedum around so the landscape looks complete. 

![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmSuUYc4Tya9s4X7RzvkrWZKXVWhi9ANbK1sMkj21gLLmY/img_20221215_130959.jpg)

This was the final look I achieved. It did take a lot of tinkering and playing around to get this final look. Working in a small space is kind of difficult for a novice like me. Maybe I might learn a few tricks with some practice. 

![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmd4y4VkUPFQbk6Ec8mXYLwAGBD8VJC8UH2Q4kZZ71jeVM/img_20221118_104426.jpg)
The actual space in the tray before I started work

Working on a shoestring budget, tiny space and limited resources forces me to think out of the box. I tried using flower sponge on the rocks at first to help the moss stick to the rocks,  but that didn't work. I tried various mediums before I thought of good old clay.

![](https://images.ecency.com/DQmPZMqH1vjFpH5GqsehS8Shw9DNSjvJ3dY4Uzaak7umbjP/img_20221215_121848.jpg)

I had to trim The roots a few times to make the jade plant fit in.  I also had to play around with various ways of sticking the rocks together. I planned to use gorilla glue with baking powder at first. It would have worked perfectly, but that would also mean it was a permanent fixture. I decided to find alternatives so the rocks could be used individually later if I planned to do something different. 

Plan B
If the moss dries out I plant to use the rocks as they are, I'd throw in with some gravel and sand to make it work like a desert landscape. 
I hope you like the final look. 

I appreciate your support.