Country Dish

Marrying moss with stone is the perfect match, but when moss is coupled with pottery, it becomes a creative pairing.

That’s exactly what happened, when David Spain of Moss and Stone Gardens collaborated with Marsha Owen, of Marsha Owen Pottery, to design stoneware containers for various  bryophytes.

Meeting David’s exacting specifications for profile and drainage, holes are included in this dish so water is quickly whisked away. David’s vision was to create a low profile piece, “To be in proportion to the bryophyte’s low profile plantings and minimal soil requirements,” says David.

Measuring a mere six inches long, this Marsha Owen oval pottery container, allows for a Lilliputian dish that begs to be picked up and held.

David’s selection of bryophytes included Parmelia and Cladonia rangiferina lichens and Cladonia rangiferina, Campylopus introflexus, Dicranum scoparium mosses.  The fern, Asplenium platyneuron, was also used as an added element to the design.

“My goal here was to compliment the beautiful cream glaze of Marsha’s pottery and to use as much diversity as I could for this very small vessel without becoming too busy,” says David.

The design offers the perfect pairing of the lichen’s pale colors, complementing the pottery and the vibrant glossy greens for contrast.

Perfect for a tabletop setting where it can admire up close and personal.