Since most people have an Ox Yoke or two hanging around the house, but are all out of Oxen and all out of farm, we’ll show you a great tutorial to get it repurposed. Yes, yes, that was sarcasm but you don’t need an Ox Yoke to do this – any old farm antique or old weathered piece of yesterday can be repurposed just as well.
This was something we repurposed before this website was even a twinkle in our eyes and I was shocked to find these photos that the ‘Plant Man’ was wise enough to take a few short years ago. He really makes my job so much easier (don’t tell him I said that!).
Applying Orchids:
Soak your moss in some water for several minutes.
While the moss is absorbing the water you may want to place your orchids on the wood to see how your arrangement looks before you tie them down – play around with different arrangements until you know where everything is going.
Back to the moss – squeeze most of the excess water out before placing it on the wood. The moss is going to retain moisture and provide some cushion for the orchids while they establish.
Place each orchid where you want it on the moss – put a little more moss on top of the roots – then secure each plant with twine. It’s easier if you do each orchid seperately unless you’re feeling confident. Don’t tie too tight – just snug enough. We just wrapped it around the plant and wood and tied it off. Fish line is great for tying things down too – Raffia can be used but it won’t last as long since it’s outdoors, but it looks good.
We added the young Spider Plants after the orchids were in place by shoving them into the moss. I think the Wandering Jew was an afterthought and in all honesty, I think we ended up removing it later.
When you notice the orchid roots growing on the wood and attaching themselves to it, you’ll know it’s establishing.
Later on, we hung a couple decorative birdhouses and more plants from the bottom.
Squirrels: They’re cute but be warned, they will try to hide acorns behind the moss! They eventually repurposed ours into a squirrel pantry, the little shits!
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