"A decade ago, I saw them hanging outside the doorways of houses in deserted, snow-covered mountain villages in Japan, holding the tremulous fronds of overwintering ferns. The technique dates back centuries, a side-product of the art of bonsai that has become popular in its own right. Kokedama are a lot easier to create at home than bonsai trees: plants' rootballs are removed from their pots and packed tightly with dense moss, before being bound with the string that can be used to hang them up with."
"There, among the miniature theatres of irises, crops of snowdrops rise from kokedama hanging in the trees The ones in the cafe were a more contemporary version: the kokedama was a squat little mound, sitting quietly as if growing straight from the table. While the moss looked green and plump, it was home to a few artfully placed sprigs of limonium (sea lavender) and dried sanguisorba kokedama as a non-polluting answer to florists' foam."
A long-term London resident encounters a kokedama in a Peckham café, which triggers layered memories tied to the neighbourhood. Kokedama are moss-covered soil balls used to display plants; the term translates as 'moss ball.' The technique originated in Japan as a side-product of bonsai and dates back centuries. Kokedama are simpler to make than bonsai: plants' rootballs are removed, packed tightly with dense moss, and bound with string for hanging. The mid-2010s houseplant craze popularised kokedama, often with delicate species. Contemporary iterations use dried flowers like limonium and sanguisorba as a non-polluting alternative to florists' foam.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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