Four Ways to Overwinter Your Succulents Amazing tips

Where you live makes a big difference when it comes to the well-being of your succulents in winter. Most varieties go dormant in winter and are frost-tender, meaning they can’t handle temps below 32 degrees F.

These common winter conditions can lead to damage or death for dormant (not actively growing) succulents:
— soggy soil (causes roots to rot)
— excess rainfall (engorges cells)
— frost (causes cell walls to burst)

Some succulents do have a built-in antifreeze. Those indigenous to the Americas, such as cacti and agaves, or to northern climates like many sedums and sempervivums, tend to fare better than those from Madagascar and South Africa (kalanchoes, aeoniums, aloes and crassulas). But no succulents want a lot of water when dormant, nor high humidity at any time of the year. All prefer well-draining soil, bright but not intense light, and good air circulation.

If you live, as I do, where frost is occasional and lasts only a few hours (Zone 9b), plan to cover vulnerable, in-ground succulents with frost cloth or bed sheets when there’s a frost advisory for your area. In my YouTube video, Frost Protection for Succulents, I show how I do this in my own garden. In the foothills NE of San Diego at 1,500 feet, it’s subject to cold air that settles in inland valleys. My neighbors higher-up generally get no frost at all.

If you live in Zones 8 or lower, grow tender succulents as annuals or in containers that you overwinter indoors. These members of my Facebook community graciously shared their winter set-ups:

Pat Enderly of Virginia Beach, VA: Midwinter lows average 32 F. Pat brings her plants indoors and tucks them into shelving units she purchased online. Each shelf has a waterproof tray, and each unit is lit by two T5 bulbs. “They do a wonderful job of keeping my succulents from etiolating (stretching),” Pat says, adding that the lights, on timers, stay on from 7 am to 7 pm daily. Pat moves her succulents indoors in Sept. and Oct. and takes them outside in April.

 

Candy Suter, Roseville, CA (near Sacramento): Midwinter nights may drop into the 20s F but seldom go lower than 25 F. Candy moves her succulents into a small walk-in greenhouse (center) or a gazebo (right), which she covers with 5mm plastic to hold in warmth. She anchors the plastic along the bottom, secures the seams with duct tape, and adds a small heater with a fan on the coldest nights.

Tenaya Capron of Buffalo, TX: Although average midwinter lows hover above freezing, occasional winter lows may drop into the single digits. Tenaya and her husband built this 24×20 free-standing greenhouse, which they outfitted with exhaust and overhead fans, an overhead heater, and double sliding barn doors on either end. I love the library ladder, don’t you?

Find more info in my book, Designing with Succulents (2nd ed.):
— Cold-Climate Succulent Gardens, pp. 111-113
— Cultivating Succulents in Challenging Climates, pp. 143-148

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Give a Signed Copy of “Designing with Succulents”! Amazing tips

A book plate creates a very special signed copy! Book plates are autographed and personalized, peel-and-stick labels that go inside a book’s cover. Mine have my publisher’s logo and my own artwork. Book plates are $2.50/each, payable to Sunwriter7@cox.net via PayPal. On the transaction page, where it says “Add a note,” type the recipient’s first name. Be sure to order signed and personalized book plates for yourself and for my other books too! Important: Include the address you want them mailed to. 

 Order the revised and updated 2nd edition of Designing with Succulents or another of my bestsellers ~

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It’s My Succulents 2018 Calendar! Amazing tips

Every year I create a calendar for friends and family who appreciate the beauty of succulents. The main criterion for each image is that I’d enjoy looking at it for a month. Some years, creating a calendar gives me a reason (and a deadline) for painting watercolors. Other years, I select the best photos from thousands in my files.

Over the years, the calendar has become a top seller at Zazzle.com. Zazzle keeps 90% of the sales price, but creating a calendar is easy, the quality is excellent, and in any case, I never meant it to be a money-maker. If my earnings pay for calendars I buy to give away, I’m thrilled.

The regular price is $22. Zazzle invariably has a sale going on, but you have to get their emails to know which items and how much…unless you wait until Black Friday, when pretty much everything is deeply discounted.

Images in my Succulents 2018 calendar are from my new book, the completely revised and updated second edition of “Designing with Succulents”. 

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Grow Tent for Indoor Succulents: What to you need to know Great Tips

A grow tent can be a great way to help keep your succulents thriving year round, but especially in the winter. Lack of sunlight indoors is hard for succulents but using a grow tent and grow lights is a great way to give them what they need! If you live anywhere that gets cold winters, [...]

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How to Propagate Succulents Amazing tips

Aaron Ryan takes a cutting from a stacked crassula

Ever wondered how to propagate a certain succulent? Lithops (living stones) for example…is it possible to take cuttings from those thick, molar-shaped leaves? How about ruffled echeverias…can a solitary rosette be made to offset? 

Most succulents can be propagated vegetatively—via stem cuttings, pulling apart offsets, or rooting leaves. To the novice, of course, such tasks are mystifying. How deep, for example, does one plant a leaf? 

Even more challenging are succulents that make propagators pull out a power drill, coffee grinder, or tub of roofing gravel—all tools routinely used by nurseryman-grower Aaron Ryan of Petaluma, CA. 

Aaron is down-to-earth in more ways than one. At past Succulent Extravaganzas at Succulent Gardens Nursery, he graciously showed standing-room-only audiences a half dozen ways to propagate a variety of succulents. 

Somehow watching Aaron grind seed pods, guillotine a frilly echeveria, or snip a stacked crassula is soothing. You know those babies are gonna make it. You also know that with Aaron’s methods, you’ll soon have plenty of new plants to play with. 

Impressed by his teaching skills, I’ve made several videos that feature Aaron. They’re short (4 to 6 min.), fun to watch, and easy to follow. You’ll find them on my YouTube channel, playlist “Succulent Propagation.” Or click below.

• Succulent Propagation from Cuttings
• Succulent Propagation by Division (Offsets)
• Succulent Propagation by Coring to Create Offsets
• Succulent Propagation from Leaves
• Echeveria Propagation by Beheading
• Propagating Succulents from Seed, Part One: Dudleyas and Echeverias
• Propagating Succulents from Seed, Part Two: Lithops

To be notified when I release a new video, subscribe to my YouTube channel. 

FIND “How to Propagate Succulents” IN MY BOOKS ~

Designing with Succulents, 2nd ed., pp. 148-154

Succulent Container Gardens, pp. 232-235

Succulents Simplified, pp. 58-61

Order now!

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My Top Five Firewise Succulents Amazing tips

It’s been a decade since wildfires devastated much of San Diego county. In Designing with Succulents (2nd edition, p. 107), I tell how my husband and I were evacuated, and how the succulent garden on the cover of the book’s first edition “saved” a home in Rancho Santa Fe.

From my Los Angeles Times article, “Did Succulents Save Her Home?” ~ “SUCCULENTS have soared in popularity recently because they’re drought-tolerant, easy-care and just plain cool to look at, and now there’s another compelling reason to grow them: They’re fire-retardant. During last month’s wildfires, succulents — which by definition store water in plump leaves and stems — apparently stopped a blaze in its tracks…” [Read more]

My top five firewise succulents are quite common and start easily from cuttings. If you live in a fire-prone, backcountry area, consider them one more weapon in your arsenal against wildfire and plant them around your property’s perimeter. As you can see, they combine to make a beautiful, low-water landscape. This garden originated entirely from cuttings:

• Opuntia (paddle cactus), the thicker the better. If you wince at the thought of having cactus in your garden, look for spineless or near-spineless varieties. They do exist, and they don’t draw blood. Those rounded, upright pads make a nice counterpoint to more finely textured plants, succulent and otherwise.
• Aloes. Mound-forming Aloe arborescens is the heroic succulent that “saved” the home of Rob and Suzy Schaefer during the devastating wildfires of 2007. It sends up orange-red, torchlike flower spikes in midwinter.
• Aeoniums. There are numerous varieties of these rosette succulents. The best ones for fire resistance are multi-branching.
• Crassulas. Plain old green jade didn’t burn during the wildfire that threatened the Schaefer home, but rather it cooked, and like the aloes, its leaves turned putty-colored and collapsed. If you think jade is boring, you may not be aware of its many cultivars. Some are striped cream-and-green; turn yellow-orange-red when grown in full sun; have silvery-gray leaves rimmed with red; or have intriguing tubular or wavy leaves.
• Portulacaria afra (elephant’s food) is shrub-like, and yes, elephants really do eat it in South Africa. In fact, the plant benefits from being stomped on because pieces root readily. The variegated variety is less vigorous and more ornamental than the common green species.

 

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Succulent Dormancy: What you really need to know Great Tips

Seasonal succulent care goes beyond a succulent dormancy table. Find out what patterns succulents go through and when to expect active growth. The amazing thing about succulents is they are find their way into gardens all over the world. They are beautiful, drought tolerant, and can be a great plant for new gardeners. However, [...]

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Scenes from Succulent Extravaganza ’17 Amazing tips

Members of the Succulent Fanatics 2 Facebook Group take advantage of a hanging frame planted with sempervivums and echeverias. A perfect photo-op!

The 7th annual Succulent Extravaganza (Fri-Sat, Sept. 29-30) at Succulent Gardens Nursery in Castroville, CA averaged about 1,000 visitors a day. Not bad for a relatively small wholesale/retail nursery out in the boonies 100 miles south of San Francisco. There’s an energy there, some might even say a vortex, that whirls visitors into a state of enchantment.

Debra Lee Baldwin and Hannah Eubanks

Hannah Eubanks, designer Laura Eubanks‘ daughter, was my assistant and took lots of footage of event highlights and my presentations. During the Extravaganza, Hannah posted short videos on my Instagram and Facebook pages. I’ll soon release longer, edited versions on YouTube. To be notified of new releases, subscribe to my YouTube channel.

Although the greenhouses themselves, viewed from outside, are about as pretty as quonset huts (which they resemble) there’s true magic inside—rows and rows of perfectly grown echeverias, aloes, kalanchoes, haworthias, sedums, sempervivums and more.

Much of the fun of returning year after year is seeing old friends and making new ones. The staff is friendly and welcoming, plant enthusiasts come from near and far, stellar speakers like Brian Kemble of the Ruth Bancroft Garden share their knowledge. Nursery founder and fellow book author Robin Stockwell was there, as were many delightful members of the Facebook group “Succulent Fanatics 2” founded by San Jose designer Laura Balaoro.

Laura Balaoro of the Succulent Fanatics 2 Facebook group, with her snorkeling-themed succulent display

Laura’s also known for her stunning succulent decorated hats. (See my article in Country Gardens.) I think she outdid herself on this one, don’t you?

Laura Balaoro’s sea-themed, succulent decorated hat

 

A barn door’s peeling paint makes a great backdrop for this sempervivum-planted square

All sizes and shapes of containers suitable for planting are available at the nursery. They seem to have the best selection of wooden ones anywhere.

 

IMHO, the nursery’s potted succulent gardens were better than ever

Also at this year’s Extravaganza, I launched my new book, the completely revised and updated second edition of Designing with Succulents. I regret not bringing more copies—we sold out the first day.

Audiences for my presentations were enthusiastic and engaged. I couldn’t ask for more!

A speaker’s dream! SRO!

And when it seemed the Extravaganza couldn’t get any better, my book’s publisher Timber Press provided a succulent-decorated cake!

The cake, by Sweet Reba’s of Carmel, CA, cleverly combines succulents with books

Also enjoy Gerhard Bock’s “Succulents and More” blog posts about the Extravaganza.

Remember to subscribe to my YouTube channel to be notified of new releases filmed at the event. Topics include clever uses of topdressing, creating a bouquet of echeveria flowers, how to compose a perfect plant-pot combo, growing succulents in nondraining containers, how to keep aeoniums looking good, agaves for your garden, Brian Kemble on in-ground succulents, how to enhance a tired container garden, and much more!

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