We are looking forward to the official start of Spring this Friday. Warmer weather, more sunlight and spring cleaning fever. Embrace the start of the season with a little DIY by creating a new succulent garden for you space. After the jump, check out the easy steps to make your very own.
1) Pick up a shallow and wide garden pot.
2) Cactus soil will be your base and can be found at any home store like Home Depot or Lowes. Pack the soil nicely. If you prefer for a lighter pot, layer packing peanuts on the bottom halfway and then soil on top. Fill it up to 1" to the top.
3) Enjoy your favorite succulents. There are tons to choose from and they are super affordable. For a 5" pot, get about 4 succulents. Dig a bit with your fingers and place the succulent. Cover the hole with soil.
4) Pick up some river rocks. You can find colored rocks at garden centers. Once all the plants are in, layer the entire top with rocks.
5) Place you newly designed plant inside or outside and enjoy!
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Why do you layer the top with river rocks? Is that functional, or just for show? Thanks.
love the recycled glass mulch
jooly - just for show! You can add any natural element to the top of your succulent garden to personalize it for your own space.
How can you tell when to water if the dirt is covered with river rocks? Do you have to worry about drainage?
i had so much fun making mine! it's so easy and looks fantastic too! i want to do another one very soon. your succulent gardens look amazing! here's mine...
http://peppermags.blogspot.com/2009/02/succulent-weekend.html
cheers,
~jacklyn
Jacklyn, your succulent garden looks great! I love the interesting white planter too. Well done!
thanks rebecca! i found both planters at thrift stores. i love the addition of the colored rocks. i was thinking of adding something to the top of mine.
I have heard the rocks are both pretty and functional - they promote good water drainage - the less water that sits near the succulent, the less likely they are to rot. This usually happens with over-watering or soil that holds the moisture too much (which is why it's good to get a cactus mix). In my experience, once a succulent gets rot, they're pretty much done for.
jick: You do have to worry about drainage!
It's tough to kill succulents, but I've done it - the one thing that do it is over-watering. It's important to have enough drainage holes in your pot and use a well-draining potting soil (ie: the catcus soil mentioned above or a mix of regular potting soil and pumice, etc.)
You should water them about every 10 days to 2 weeks.
PS - Jacklyn: gorgeous!
Haha, nlzee: I think we were typing the same thing at the same time. Sorry to reiterate but it's nice to have the validation. ;)
I use a half/half mix of sand and soil for succulents, and add a layer of rocks on the bottom to help with drainage.
Pour an inch of pea gravel (about $2.99 for a 3 pound bag where I live) into the bottom of the pot to help with drainage and then add the cactus soil followed by more pea gravel on top if you would like.
.99 Only Stores have great deals on ceramic pots and succulents this time of year. They even carry bio-degradable bamboo pots, gardening tools, flower bulbs, etc for the low, low price of .99 each.
all my succulents died. apparently i am a crap gardener...
I will try this on the weekend pending succulents aren't on the list of plants that will kill my kitten if she eats them. :P
The garden looks great in the pics tho!
alisaan - I think medicinal aloe (ironically) is toxic to some animals - heads up!
this is a great site...i just started gardening--have very small outdoor space in a triplex--i love succulents--beautiful, great in a drought, can find them roadside or buy small ones cheap (they will grow like crazy) and so fun to play with--just like you've shown and others are commenting on-i like to mix them up in the pots, add river rocks, pieces of driftwood, beach glass (which i love to collect), broken pottery, anything fun and interesting--i also love to find interesting things at garage sales to use as planters (another very inexpensive way to have cool "pots"-as long as you drill at least one drain hole at the bottom)--you also don't have to spend money on a special potting mix--mine grow great with a mix of potting soil and sand--i had a very large pot at my front door-about 4'x4' and nothing would grow--so i placed a smaller pot with flowers in the center and surrounded it with several succulents (they'll grow anywhere), rocks and driftwood...i have a tiny toy wheelbarrow as a planter that fits just right on the railing at my front door--you can always find or create a spot when you have very little space for plants...your front door--maybe place a shelf outside a window--you can get creative and don't have to spend much money at all in the whole process..i am loving it! i hope you'll be able to view a few photos of my succulents at http://debsphotos12.shutterfly.com/23 (it's a new site i've never used--please let me know if it works)...debba