How to Make Succulent Arrangements…Summer Project in the Greenhouse

During these hot, summer months this garden project allows you to “get your hands in the dirt” without much exertion…and even if you don’t feel like you “have a green thumb” you’ll find making these succulent arrangements, easy and rewarding.

There’s something satisfying about getting your hands in the soil.”

~ E. A. Bucchianeri

Today we’re heading up the garden pathway to the cottage greenhouse to make some succulent arrangements.

According to Wikipedia…“In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. Succulents may store water in various structures, such as their leaves and stems.

All the succulent plants I used in my arrangements (with their cute, chubby, signature leaves) came from Tractor Supply Co. and were a literal and figurative “windfall,” *more about that in a minute, but small, inexpensive pots of succulents can be found at any Garden Center.

*NOW FOR THE REST OF THE STORY…When we pulled into the parking lot of our Tractor Supply Company, we saw 2 workers sweeping up a mess outside the garden center…throwing a mixture of broken pots, plants, and soil into a trash bin. When I asked what happened, they told me a huge gust of wind had blown over the succulent display…the plant tags were all mixed up, many of the pots and plants were broken, and they were throwing them all away since they couldn’t sell them in that condition.

I asked if they would mind checking with their manager to see if I could have some, and the manager of Tractor Supply Company happily told me I could take as many plants as I wanted…my literal and figurative windfall! I couldn’t believe my luck! I could hardly wait to scoop up the bruised and battered plants, clean up their “scrapes and bruises” and tuck them into a nice, fresh bed of soil.

It’s an ill wind that blows nobody any good.

~ John Heywood 1546

Looking forlorn after their fall, all the succulents needed some TLC and to be transplanted to different pots.

I love displaying the glassware and vases I find on our flea market and antiquing forays and I keep them on the shelves in the greenhouse, waiting to be filled. Antique dishes, pottery, metal pots, and urns make wonderful containers for plants and arrangements.

Bird themed vases, an array of crystal and porcelain vases, and flower frogs are within easy reach and ready for making flower arrangements when I’m working at my potting table.

I went to “shop” from my greenhouse shelves and found 4 charming containers to transplant the succulents in. One container I’d chosen was an antique and I didn’t want the interior to get damaged, so I cut a piece from a trash can liner to fit up the bottom and sides of the vessel before filling it with the succulent mix.

Adding Miracle Gro Succulent and Cactus Soil to each container.

Then I chose an assortment of succulents in varying sizes, textures, and colors to place in each plant container. When making each arrangement, I placed my tallest plants near the center of the vessels, then filled in the remaining spaces with smaller plants, making sure I used a variety of plants in each container for visual interest.

I love how the finished arrangement looks in this antique urn with the airy succulent draping over the side.

Succulent Planting and Care Guide:

• Choose container to plant succulents in
• Add Miracle Gro Succulent and Cactus Soil or other well-draining potting mixture (do not use regular potting mix – it retains too much moisture for succulents!)
• Add succulents to the planting mix, using a variety of colors and textures. Plant the tallest plants in the center of the container, then fill in the remaining space with a variety of shorter “fillers” and plant any “draping” succulents on the edges of the container.
• Succulents, unlike cactus, can’t tolerate extreme heat or cold and prefer temperatures between 70 -90 degrees…and is why most succulents are houseplants.
• Succulents need lots of indirect light (direct sunlight will burn their leaves)
• DO NOT OVERWATER! Succulents should only be watered when the planting mixture is dry

Porcelain vegetable dish filled with 5 different varieties of succulents.

Small brass planter with embossing on the sides filled with 4 different varieties of succulents.

All cleaned up and tucked in their beds…ready to be taken inside.

Basking in the sun!

Look how much they’ve already grown!

They’re thriving in my music room! (:

Have fun making your own succulent arrangements. They’ll spark your creativity and you’ll love the cheery bit of nature these miniature gardens bring into your home.

From my cottage to yours ~ Trenda

“Then God said, ‘Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.’ And it was so.” Genesis 1:11