If you’re looking for ways to transform your landscape this season, incorporating succulents is an effortless way to liven up your garden spaces. Succulents have deservingly found their way to the forefront of home and garden trends. These low-maintenance plants complement any existing plants, shrubs, and perennials. Yet, they are vibrant and interesting enough to stand alone, lending to their versatility and recent popularity.
Why succulents?
There is a reason you’ve likely seen these unique and colorful little plants arranged in featured displays at your local grocery stores. Succulents are a hardy family of plants, with dozens of varieties, all tending to attract visual interest, thanks to their intricate features, vibrant colors, and textual variance. However, the real allure lies in how easy these plants are to care for. So, whether you’re an experienced gardener or notoriously known for killing every Peace lily ever gifted to you, you can feel confident adding succulents to your indoor and outdoor spaces without trepidation.
Caring for Succulents
As noted previously, succulents are low-maintenance plants. They thrive in temperate climates (like the midwest), prefer infrequent watering, and can withstand some neglect. Actually, when succulents fail, overwatering (as opposed to underwatering) is usually the culprit.
Most succulents need at least 50 degree temps and can withstand a varying balance of sunlight and shade. They have shallow root systems, allowing them to thrive in virtually any container or garden bed, as long as it has adequate drainage. Succulents prefer warm temperatures, so while they can be grown indoors year-round, wait until late spring to plant outside.
Expert Design Tips
As you begin to map out your landscape and garden spaces for the upcoming season, incorporating succulents into your design plan will add vibrance, color, and visual interest. When considering landscape design, sometimes it’s helpful to defer to the experts. Florists have coined the terms, “thriller, filler, and spiller” to distinguish between the types of flower and plant varieties. This is how they achieve such a balanced, professional aethstetic. You can recreate these beautiful arrangements by incorporating all three types into your landscape design. Succulent varieties are so vast and versatile, there is a type for every purpose.
Some tips from the pros:
- Brighten up your patio spaces by arranging succulents in built-in planters, hanging baskets, or in potted succulents at varied heights.
- Succulents grow beautifully in nooks and crannies along stone walls. Consider spiller varieties, such as string of pearls, string of bananas, and donkey tail.
- Sunlight tends to bring out the vibrant colors in succulents, while shade preserves their green hue.
- Succulents stand out best against neural backgrounds. Try incorporating colorful varieties into a pebble garden bed or along rock/gravel berms and pathways.
Spend some time scrolling online or visiting your local flower and garden shops for inspiration. Consider the amount of sun and shade each area will receive, and research which types will grow best in each space. A little research goes a long way as you determine which types will best grow, complement, and add contrast to your outdoor spaces.
Need some help designing the perfect patio space or neutral backdrop for your succulent garden? Our design professionals would love to help! Contact us today for a consultation!
