Everyone loves an aesthetically-pleasing succulent arrangement, and with Garden Answer’s guidance, you can create one for your own home. Plus, with Espoma Organic’s Cactus Potting Mix full of the nutrients you need to set your succulents up for success, you can focus on having fun with the colors, shapes, and textures of these special plants!
Are you ready to bring succulents into your home but not sure where to start? Laura from Garden Answerhas you covered! In this video, she shares her top seven beginner-friendly indoor succulents and simple care tips to help them thrive. Laura recommends starting with a high-quality organic potting soil like Espoma Organic Cactus Mixand feeding with an organic fertilizer like Espoma Organic Cactus! Liquid Plant Food.
Houseplants are so much more than decorations. They help reduce stress and tension and create a relaxed and happy atmosphere. They absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen while purifying the air by removing toxins. They say we spend a third of our life sleeping, so let’s do it in the best possible environment, a room full of house plants.
The best plants for a healthy night’s sleep.
Photo courtesy of Costa Farms
Snake Plant
Snake plants convert carbon dioxide to oxygen at night. It is also one of the easiest and most forgiving houseplants you can grow. Whether you have bright or low light, a snake plant will adjust to it. It doesn’t require much water and even if you forget to water it for a couple of weeks, it will still look great. Overwatering it is really the only way to kill it.
Photo courtesy of Costa Farms
Golden Pothos
A study from NASA shows that pothos removes toxins, mainly carbon monoxide and formaldehyde from the air. This low-maintenance plant grows well in low light. Water it only when completely dry. Always pot your houseplants in quality potting soil like Espoma’s Potting Mix or a mixture of potting mix and Cactus Mix for plants like this that require excellent drainage.
Photo courtesy of Costa Farms
Spider Plant
The spider plant removes formaldehyde from the air, which is a common carcinogen found in many household products and items. This is another easy to grow selection that enjoys bright light, but will adapt to low light situations. Like all house plants, a regular schedule of fertilizing will help keep spider plants in tip-top shape. Organic liquid fertilizer like Espoma’s Indoor! works beautifully and has an easy dose cap, meaning you’ll never use too much or too little.
Photo courtesy of Costa Farms
English Ivy
English ivy has the unique ability to clean the air of mold. Ivy is a trailing plant that you can train to grow up a trellis or let it cascade down from a shelf. It can be an aggressive plant outdoors, but inside it’s well behaved. Keep the soil moist, but not wet, and give it a place with indirect light.
Photo courtesy of Costa Fams
Aloe vera
Aloe has been used as a medicinal plant to heal: sunburn, cuts, insect bites, minor burns, and dry skin. It’s also an air purifier. Aloe likes bright light. Water it well every two weeks or when the soil feels very dry. Fertilize with Cactus! monthly to give it nutrients.
Photo courtesy of Costa Farms
Peace Lilies
Peace lilies also made it on NASA’s list of toxin removing plants. They can absorb mold spores from the air into their leaves. It’s a pretty plant with calla-like flowers that likes bright light. Regular watering is a must (they’ll let you know when they’re thirsty by letting their leaves droop.)
Lavender
Lavender has been used for centuries for its soothing, sleep-inducing properties. Victorian ladies used to stuff their pillows with lavender to relieve stress. Today you can find a wide array of lavender products to help whisk you off to sleep. Lavender isn’t often sold as a houseplant but you can grow it outdoors and harvest the flowers for the bedroom.
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Ready for more relaxing? Check out these blogs for ideas.
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Succulent arrangements are long lasting creations that can be enjoyed indoors or out. This DIY video from Garden Answer will show you just how easy it is to create your own succulent arrangement
Form Follows Function
Arranging succulents is all about texture, form and color. Use contrasting forms to add interest. Think of the round foliage of a string of pearls plant in comparison to the rosettes of hen and chicks for example. The prickly form of the gold tooth aloe is entirely different than the glossy foliage of a Kalanchoe. Experiment with different textures and heights to create something entirely unique.
Color Palette
Color also plays an important part in the design. Many succulents have colorful foliage. Think of the nearly black Aeonium ‘Zwartkop’ or the orange hues of Graptosedum ‘California Sunset’. Even the container can reinforce the color palette. In this video, a variety of warm colors are used and are picked up the terra cotta accent of the pot.
Care Tips
Caring for a succulent couldn’t be easier. Their number one nemesis is too much water. Pot them up with an organic, potting soil designed for succulents and cacti like Espoma’s Cactus Mix. This will ensure that the soil drains freely. Your succulents also need a special diet. Feed them with an organic liquid fertilizer like Espoma’s Cactus! Succulents love sunshine and their colors will be most intense in bright light.
Meet the Stars of This Garden Answer Video
String of Pearls
This is a highly ornamental plant that can be grown both indoors or out. The “foliage” looks like a string of green pearls. They cascade beautifully over the edge of containers and hanging baskets. This is a show-stopper that will attract lots of attention.
Sempervivium ‘Aglo’
Sempervivum, are commonly known as “hen and chicks.” Each spring new rosettes form that are called the “chicks.” This cultivar is known for its terra cotta colored foliage. The color is best in bright sunlight.
Echeveria pulvinata
Echeveria is also known as a Chenille Plant, ‘Ruby Blush’, ‘Ruby Slippers’, or ‘Red Velvet’ because it has a crimson color. The foliage has a velvety coating to protect it from the intense sun in its native habitat.
Aeonium ‘Zwartkop’
‘Zwartkopf’ is a striking succulent, with very dark purple, almost black foliage. The long bare stems are topped with a rosette of leaves and can bloom with clusters of yellow, star-shaped flowers.
Kalanchoe blossfeildiana
This versatile succulent is prized for its glossy foliage and brightly colored flowers that bloom for months. This is a stand out in a container and is extremely low-maintenance. They are available in a wide variety of colors.
Gold Tooth Aloe
These golden spines may look mean, but they are actually soft and won’t harm you. In full sun the foliage will be tinged with orange. Watch for the red blooms in summer.
Graptosedum ‘California Sunset’
Durable, grayish new leaves of this succulent will become tinged with pink in full sun. Happy plants will produce white flowers in spring. The “sunset” coloration is truly striking. Easy to grow and very low maintenance.
Crassula Jade
Crassula, commonly known as the jade plant, are carefree and easy to grow. This beautiful house plant can also be grown outdoors in the summertime. Jade plants are considered to be symbols of good luck, prosperity and friendship.
Check out these blogs to learn more about growing succulents.
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Separating large aloe plants into several smaller ones is a wonderful way to propagate new plants to share with friends and family or to use in other projects. It’s also a great way to save money. The large Gold Tooth Aloe Laura from Garden Answer divides in this video cost $22 and produced over 20 new plants.
Aloes are desert plants that are hardy in zones 9-11, or to about 20 degrees Fahrenheit. In cooler regions they may be grown in containers and brought indoors for the winter. Aloe is a clump-forming plant meaning they naturally produce many baby plants called offsets. Mature plants flower in late spring and early summer with bright orange-red blossoms that attract pollinators.
Six Steps to Separating the Offsets
Gently slide the plant out of its container
Wear gloves when handling succulents with sharp foliage
Carefully tease the soil away from the roots
Select an offset and follow its stem down to the spot that it’s attached to the main plant
Break it off with gentle pressure, take your time to remove all of the others
Remove dead, damaged or dried up leaves
Replanting the Mother Plant
It is always best to use fresh soil when repotting since the nutrients in the nursery potting soil are likely used up. All succulents and cacti need a free-draining, organic, potting soil like Espoma’s Cactus Mix. Roots will rot in wet soil. The main plant will still have plenty of roots and can be repotted. Wait to water it for about a week to allow the leaf scars to callous over. This helps to prevent disease and infections.
Photo courtesy of Garden Answer
Replanting the Offsets
The offsets all have open wounds where they were broken off from the main plant. The wounds need several days to dry and callus over. One method involves letting them dry on a table in bright, but indirect sunlight for 5-7 days before planting. They may also be planted right away but not watered in for a week.
Care and Feeding
Aloe prefers full sun to light shade. These plants are drought-resistant but container plants benefit from some extra water during the hottest days of summer. Feed regularly with an organic fertilizer like Espoma’s Cactus! Always follow the package directions.
Check out these blogs for more information about growing succulents and the secrets to their care.
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Everyone likes to dress up their desks and it is fun to bring a little of the outdoors inside. Succulent arrangements can be chic or playful. Jurassic Park dish garden anyone? You may want to make one with a holiday theme by mixing in tiny holiday ornaments. Go hunting for unique containers.
Succulents are simple to grow with a little care and knowhow. They only need a small amount of water about every 10 days or so. . Good drainage is a must. Always use Cactus Mix, Cactus! soil.
A trick to find out if your plant needs water is stick a dry toothpick into the drainage hole at the bottom of the pot. If it comes out dry, it’s time to water. If there are bits of soil stuck to it, wait a few more days. It’s exactly like testing to see if a cake is done.
Always put them in the sunniest place possible. That can be tough in an office situation, unless you have that spacious, corner office. Happily, they’ll respond to that florescent light above your desk. LED light is fine too.
Photo courtesy of Costa Fams
Aloe
Plant several is one container to create a contemporary design. They would also be easy to combine with other succulents in a dish garden. Fertilize a few times in spring and summer to keep them happy. They grow 6 to 12 inches tall and wide.
Albuca
Albuca has a unique growing habit. It produces a thick bulb above ground. Thin grassy foliage rises from the bulb and blooms with green and white flowers. Try growing them with small succulents like Echeveria elegans. They grow 8 inches tall and wide.
Perle von Nurnberg Echeveria
Echeveria is a small succulent, just a few inches high. The overlapping leaves of this echeveria species are beautiful in color. A greyish brown base with light pink and purple highlights creates contrast between the leaves. In the summer, the flowers can become coral to red with a yellow interior.
Kalanchoe
Kalanchoe is a beautiful succulent that can have colors of red, cream, and even yellow in its large, round leaves. No wonder they call them flapjack plants. One plant is all you’d need to create a show stopping display. It grows 1 to 2 feet tall.
Photo courtesy of Costa Farms
Haworthia
A big name for a small plant but the deep green leaves with white stripes really is a stand out. They look brilliant on small containers top dressed with a layer of five white gravel. They don’t like direct light so they work especially well in an office setting. They grow 2 to 8 inches tall and wide.
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