Tufa is a natural volcanic material mainly used outdoors for building work, boundary and partition walls, coating, arches and architectural elements besides being fit for garden furnishings, pavements, benches, fountains and rustic earthenware, where it's natural beauty is best expressed in the decoration of implementation of projects of ornamental gardens. This product is usually used "raw" in it's natural form since it very quickly develops a special patina over time and takes on it's most natural look. Little is known about the first use of Tufa for growing plants but it has certainly beused in the cultivation of plants for at least 50 years and longer. Entombed vegetation and organic matter contribute to the plant foods held within, including calcium and other minerals which offer plant roots a soft granular material riddled with countless pores which in turn act as drainage and aeration channels as well as long lasting moisture stores. This combination is sufficient to satisfy some plants, in particular those species that have adapted to the spartan habitats of rock crevices and scree.
