A dracaena kokedama hanging on twine, rhipsalis trailing beneath the moss ball

The cedar greenhouse behind Heather's house, hanging ferns at the door

Albany, New York

La Casadel Amor

A house of living things

Oh, hello. You found us.

I · The Door

Come in, the door's always open.

I'm Heather. Everything you're about to see started right here, in the little greenhouse behind my house.

It was meant to keep a few plants alive through an Albany winter. Somewhere along the way, it started keeping me going too.

Scroll to step inside

II · Hands in the Soil

Nothing here is rushed.

Kokedama means "moss ball": a Japanese way of growing a plant without a pot that goes back more than 400 years. Every piece here is grown, wrapped and tied by hand. Let me show you how one comes to life.

A red coleus kokedama held up in the garden

Gather

I start with the plant, never the pot. I wait until it tells me who it wants to be.

Wrap

Roots are tucked into soil and sphagnum, then wrapped in living sheet moss. It smells like the forest after rain.

A variegated kokedama bound in string, held in one hand

Bind

Each moss ball is tied with twine, one loop at a time. No two ever come out the same.

Two dracaena kokedama on a black stand and a white pedestal

Wait

Then the hardest part: patience. A few weeks of mist and light before it's ready for a new home.

III · Living Sculptures

Every plant here has a name, a temper, and a favorite window. I don't send them off as décor. I send them off as company.

A dracaena kokedama held in the palm of a hand — Dracaena Kokedama

An orchid, peperomia and alocasia arrangement — Orchid & Alocasia

Three kokedama on black metal stands and a white pedestal — Kokedama on Stands

IV · The Studio

My favorite corner of the world.

Inside the greenhouse studio: cedar shelves lined with plants

Inside, it's potting soil, good light and a radio that only gets one station. The shelves change with the seasons: whatever's growing, whatever's blooming, whatever needs a little extra love.