You can find this post here on my new site for the full post and to leave comments.
I found two 12" shallow clay pots in my garage I'm planting up with succulents this summer. So far costs are staying low by using donated cuttings and found scraps.
Here are the early parts of the first bowl, with a Sempervivum cultivar that's been shared around and around on the street - it's a large growing type that is extremely prolific. A decent sized patch will end up with several blooming plants each year but will fill in before you notice a hole once they're done flowering. The whole plant turns dark red over the winter (you can still see some of the colour at the tips) and keeps some of the colour over the summer. I also have a few cuttings off an unknown Sedum (Sedum rupestre? It does look very much like a blue form of 'Angelina' - maybe 'Blue Spruce?'). I'll probably be planting some of this around the base of my Clematis alongside my Hosta 'June' - the blues can play off each other well and the textures will contrast beautifully.
Sedum rupestre 'Blue Spruce'
I think I'll be picking up a bag of Pea Gravel for a top dressing. I'm thinking about adding in a little pot of ice plant (Delosperma sp.) and a different looking 'Sempervivum' as well ('Oddity' or 'Cobweb' or something like that). Either the same or a different Sedum will round things out on the other side of the pot. I guess I could include a non-succulent drought tolerant plant like Woolly Thyme as well. It's good practice I guess because I'll be doing up containers like this with hardy succulents at work. I can try different combinations there too (and price is really no big deal). It's nice having succulents that would typically be low ground covers in a container where they can be appreciated up close.
Sempervivum cv. Click to view larger to see the adorable little spines along the leaves and another picture here.
I'm thinking of going more tropical with the second container with Echeveria, Sedum, and maybe a Kalanchoe thyrsiflora. Maybe some random unlabeled succulents I can get for something like $4 each plus cuttings to fill.
Andrew, you're so lucky to work in a place where you can let your imagination go wild. There are so many great succulent plants that combine in a planter, and it's so fun to create such beautiful containers. Do you have a patio to display them on?
ReplyDeleteA small patio, 8x8, Soon to be full of houseplants and herbs and tomatoes. On the table, the stairs, when not in use on the side of the bbq...
ReplyDeleteWorking in a garden center certainly does have its perks sometimes. We're encouraged to make up planters that show plant combinations that people can either take, or be inspired by. Showing off hardy succulents and drought tolerant plants and all their textures and colours in combinations I'd never be able to fit in my garden in a small container will be really fun this year.