Saguaro Feliz: noviembre 2019

lunes, 25 de noviembre de 2019

My Top Three Succulent Holiday Projects Amazing tips

It's time to deck the halls with your favorite chubby plants. You'll love my top three succulent holiday projects. When you make them, do take photos of the results for your season's greetings. And if you post them on social media, kindly tag yours truly!

A great source of cuttings and small plants for these projects is Mountain Crest Gardens, a succulent mail-order nursery (of which I'm proud to be affiliated).

Above: Two of my own succulent holiday topiary trees. Left: I used cuttings from my garden and from Altman Plants. Right: Sempervivums from Mountain Crest Gardens create a traditional-looking, textural tree. I used Senecio rowleyanus (string of pearls) for the garlands.

Favorite Holiday Project #1: CREATE A SUCCULENT TREE

Succulent topiary trees need less care than floral arrangements and last much longer—several months or more. When the weather warms in the spring, pull them apart and plant the cuttings. Care requirements are similar to those of succulent wreaths…[Read More]

Shop for cuttings.

See my video: How to Make a Succulent Topiary Christmas Tree, DIY (8:28)

Succulent holiday project: Aeonium snowflakes

Above: These succulent snowflakes are in vases on my coffee table. So simple! The pup is Lucky, a chihuahua mix.

Favorite Holiday Project #2: AEONIUM SNOWFLAKES

The easiest of my top three succulent holiday projects is great to do with kids. Cut simple snowflakes from soft, pliable foam paper (available at any craft store), or use 4-inch plastic snowflakes with the centers snipped out. Use to frame small, stemmed succulent rosettes.

I use aeoniums because they're abundant in my garden, but any geometric rosette succulent with several inches of stem will do. If kept in water or moist floral foam, they'll last well past New Year's. Use them to...

Combine in a bouquet as a hostess gift
Add to a floral centerpiece for a holiday look
Place in slender vases as a tabletop display
Present to guests as party favors
Create a corsage, boutonnière or hair ornament

Be sure to watch my one-min. YouTube DIY video.

Floral centerpiece with aeonium snowflakes. I get white plastic snowflakes at Amazon (affiliate link).

This is my template for cutting foam-paper snowflakes. Cut an X in the center to hold the stem in place.

Obtain aeoniums online.

Before you hang a newly made succulent wreath, use it for a photo that frames your lovely self.

Favorite Holiday Project #3 MAKE A SUCCULENT WREATH

Follow my simple instructions to make a succulent wreath, and you’ll see why such decorations have been popular for decades. I make a soil-less succulent wreath because...Read More

Above: One of many I've made. A succulent wreath lasts for years with proper care.

Watch my YouTube video: How to Make a Succulent Wreath, DIY (3:58)

Shop online for cuttings.

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

I invite you to enjoy this half-minute video of my family at Thanksgiving. May your own be blessed!

Baldwin Thanksgiving tradition: singing grace

Jim and James sing grace (God Bless America) before passing the turkey.

Select Succulent Cuttings

Succulent Topiary Tree Holiday Centerpiece

My DIY succulent topiary tree holiday centerpiece needs less care than a floral arrangement and lasts much longer—several months or more. Its requirements are similar to those of a succulent wreath: bright but not intense light (rotate occasionally for even exposure), weekly watering (from the top, to evenly moisten the moss), and pinching back if…

Make a Succulent Wreath, Step-By-Step

Make a Succulent Wreath, Step-by-Step Succulent wreaths have been popular for decades. Follow these simple instructions to make a succulent wreath, and you’ll find out why. No soil needed! I recommend making a soil-less succulent wreath because soil is messy, heavy, dries out quickly, and—surprisingly—isn’t needed. Cuttings readily root into a moss-filled form. I also…

Succulent Wreath Tips and Ideas

Do you like the succulent wreath that my friend Denise made during a wreath party at my home? To create a similar one, you’ll need about 100 cuttings, a wire wreath form, 24-gauge florist’s wire, a chopstick, and a bag of sphagnum moss. The form, moss and wire are available at any craft store. Cuttings will root right…

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sábado, 23 de noviembre de 2019

Shop Online at Succulent Chic Amazing tips

When you shop at Succulent Chic, my online Zazzle store, you'll find hundreds of gift and decorative items based on my very best succulent photos and paintings. In addition to my 2020 calendar, my Succulent Chic shop offers succulent throw pillows, mugs, greeting cards, coasters, and stretched canvas prints. New this year are gift and decor collections that feature echeverias, cactus and spiral succulents. Do check it out -- I'm eager to know what you think!*

Be sure to enter Zazzle's daily discount code at time of purchase. One of the best days to shop is Black Friday, when items may be discounted as much as 60%. Granted, that significantly reduces my royalty (I earn 10% of the sales price), but what's most important is that YOU get the best deal.

New Items and Top Sellers

I'm amazed at how Zazzle continually comes up with new items that artists can customize. What started out with keychains, notecards and posters, is now...well, have a look!

New items and best sellers at Succulent Chic, my online shop

Succulents 2020 Calendar from Shop Succulent Chic

Succulents 2020 Calendar, cover and pages, from Succulent Chic

Why Succulent Chic?

The idea originated 15 years ago when I was getting requests from people who wanted to use my images for notecards, posters, T-shirts and more. I preferred to create and sell my own. A friend was using Zazzle, an online fulfillment company that enables people to upload their own photos or artwork, create custom products, and open a store on the site.

Zazzle makes each item to order, so there's no overhead for the artist. The calendar came about when I decided to improve my skill at watercolor painting and discovered that succulents were perfect subjects.

*Do you have requests, questions or suggestions? Please let me know in the comments below! Thanks, Debra

The Succulent Lovers’ Wish List

I’m confident any succulent lover would be pleased with the wish-list suggestions below. I found some while shopping online. Others are from my own Zazzle store.

Great Gifts for Succulent Lovers

Much of what follows is my own wish list, but these items would likely make great gifts for you and other succulent lovers as well. Some I already own and figured you’d want them too. If you’re the giftee, consider forwarding this to the gifter. Note: Some links go to Amazon, where I’m an associate, so…

My Succulents 2020 Calendar

Every year I create a calendar so I have to do a dozen watercolors. Painting is a cherished hobby, but—maybe you can relate?—I need a deadline to do it. In August, I hadn’t picked up a brush for nearly a year and had lots to relearn.

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Holiday Decorating with Succulents Amazing tips

Update your traditional holiday decorating items, and make them even more special with succulents. Here you'll find a Thanksgiving cornucopia, a topiary-cone Christmas tree, wreaths, and eye-catching outdoor decor. All are great fun to design, create and assemble with friends and family.

SUCCULENT TOPIARY TREE HOLIDAY CENTERPIECE

MAKE A SUCCULENT WREATH, STEP-BY-STEP

Follow these simple instructions to make a succulent wreath, and you’ll see why such wreaths have been popular for decades. I make a soil-less succulent wreath because soil is messy, heavy, dries out quickly, and—surprisingly—isn’t needed. Cuttings readily root into a moss-filled form. I also…Read More

Watch my YouTube video: How to Make a Succulent Wreath, DIY (3:58)

MAKE A SUCCULENT CORNUCOPIA

A succulent cornucopia serves as a refreshing update on the traditional Thanksgiving centerpiece, and then after the holiday, you can remove the plants and pot them...[Read More]

Watch my YouTube video: How to Make a Succulent Cornucopia, DIY (3:58)

DECORATE A CACTUS WITH HOLIDAY LIGHTS, STEP-BY-STEP

These DIY step-by-step instructions correspond to my YouTube video: Decorate a Cactus with Holiday Lights. Inspired by my friend Sabine Hildebrand's holiday succulent garden, I decided to light up a succulent of my own. The resulting potted ferocactus is the holiday centerpiece for a patio table visible from my kitchen and dining room. The plant’s translucent…[Read More]

Watch my YouTube video: How to Decorate a Cactus with Holiday Lights (3:03)

Also see Decorate Your Succulent Garden With Lights (1:16) Sabine's succulent garden looks magical decorated with holiday lights. You'll love her fresh way of showcasing popular varieties. Easy, too!

JIM SUDAL’S CACTUS PAD HOLIDAY TREE

Jim Sudal‘s cactus pad holiday tree is a clever reinterpretation of the traditional fir tree, and perfect for the dry, hot Southwest. Like Jim, many residents of Phoenix (and well beyond) have stands of prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica). The juicy-leaved succulent is iconic to the region. “Last year I built a garland around my gallery…Read More

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miércoles, 20 de noviembre de 2019

The Succulent Lovers’ Wish List Amazing tips

Modesty aside, I'd like to think that my Succulents 2020 Calendar is on every succulent lover's wish list. But I know it's not. "Your watercolors are lovely," a newsletter subscriber wrote, "but I'd really rather have a photo calendar." Well, creating one wouldn't induce me to paint 12 watercolors a year, would it? Even with hobbies, I need a deadline.

Such slightly skewed reasoning doesn't apply to the other wish-list suggestions below. I'm confident these would please any succulent lover. I found some of them while shopping online for gifts and special tools. Others are from my own Zazzle store. Note: A few links are affiliate, meaning I get a small percentage when you click-and-purchase. This costs you nothing extra and helps to support my efforts.

Succulent Plants and Accessories

Succulent sampler gift box

Succulent Sampler Gift Box -- Nine perfectly packaged succulents arrive ready to go into individual pots or combine in a floral-style arrangement. $28 (18% off with code BN18 in Nov.) from Mountain Crest Gardens.

Check out Mountain Crest's selection of Unusual Succulent Varieties too!

White ceramic pots for succulents

Set of six white ceramic pots -- Each 3.15-in. diameter. These have drain holes and come with bamboo trays to protect windowsills and countertops. $16.

Horticultural pumice

Horticultural pumice -- A nice gift to accompany plants and/or pots, pumice serves as top-dressing to give containers a finished look, and when added to soil enhances aeration and absorbs excess moisture. 2 dry quarts, $14.

A book plate makes a book a signed copy.

A book plate creates a signed copy

My books make great gifts too, and the best one for beginners is Succulents Simplified. Want to give a signed copy? Order a book plate for $2.50/ea. (free to newsletter subscribers who send me an SASE).

Succulent back pack

Succulent Fashions by Dyana Hesson -- I'm over the moon about Dyana's paintings, and happy that some of her work is now on scarves, tote bags and more. (If she were to do a succulent calendar, I'd go whimpering into a corner.) I'm asking Santa for this "impromptu travel pack." ($60)

Cactus weeder

Cactus Weeder -- This inexpensive tool---actually a fish-hook extractor---makes a great stocking stuffer and thoughtful gift. $8 on Amazon.

Cactus gloves

Thorn Armor Gloves -- With three layers of exceptionally tough, durable fabric, it's no wonder Arizona artist Jim Sudal wears these when creating a 7-foot holiday tree out of cactus pads.

From my Zazzle Store

Succulent Chic, my online shop, offers gift and decorative items inspired by my favorite succulent photos and paintings. In addition to my 2020 calendar, you'll find succulent pillows, mugs, greeting cards, and stretched canvas prints. New this year are Echeveria, Cactus and Spiral Succulents collections. Note: Zazzle has great sales, so at check-out, be sure to enter the daily discount code.

Succulents 2020 Calendar

Succulent pillows

This cactus snowflake card is one of 65 in my Greeting Cards collection.

Visit My Zazzle Store

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miércoles, 13 de noviembre de 2019

Winter Care for Frost-Tender Succulents Amazing tips

Depending on where you live, here's how to get frost-tender South African succulents---like crassulas (jades), euphorbias, senecios and aloes---through a North American winter.

Coastal CA from the Bay Area south

Your climate is more similar to South Africa's than anywhere in North America. You banana-belters don't get frost, and winter humidity and rainfall are low, so simply make sure your succulents get good drainage during storms.

California, inland

Welcome to my own imperfect climate! At 1,500 feet in the foothills NE of San Diego, frosty nights follow rain. When temps are predicted to drop below 32 degrees F, I drape succulents with bed sheets, frost cloth, or floating row covers.
On YouTube, watch how I protect my own garden.

In a light frost, leaf tips may show some damage (frost burn). In a hard frost, temps stay below freezing for hours, and frost-tender plants collapse.
Learn more in my article: Frost and Succulents: What You Need to Know.

Northwest, Northeast, Midwest

Generally, the higher the elevation and/or latitude, the colder it gets. You'll need to overwinter all but hardy succulents indoors---perhaps in your basement---or within a climate-controlled shelter.

Here on my site, find:

Desert Southwest

Your climate is challenging for South African succulents due to intense summer sun, heat, and monsoon-like storms; and winter's frosty nights. Grow your favorites on a covered patio, and embrace (well, not literally) native succulents such as cacti, agaves, dasylirions and yuccas.

Southeast

Plants from arid regions don't like damp, humid climates, and certain desirable succulents (notably echeverias and aeoniums) can't handle summer rain. This excerpt from Designing with Succulents (2nd ed.) gives succulents suitable for moist, tropical areas.

USDA Hardiness Zone map

Above: The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map is a good basic guideline when it comes to temperature lows. But it's not much help when determining winter care for frost-tender succulents. It doesn't take into account rainfall and humidity, which even in milder zones make growing succulents challenging.

Overwintering

Overwintering Succulents How to keep succulents happy during the cold winter months 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. Winter Conditions That Damage Succulents These common…

Cold Hardy Succulents: Details, Photos and Varieties

Cold-Hardy Succulents: Details, Photos & Varieties Looking for succulents that go below freezing? You’re in the right place! About cold-hardy succulents The common cold-hardy succulents shown here can handle northern winters, snow, rainstorms (if given excellent drainage) and summer dry spells. Most cold-hardy succulents are in the genera Sedum and Sempervivum. Sedum (stonecrop) Trailing varieties are lovely as…

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martes, 5 de noviembre de 2019

Wheelchair Accessible Succulent Garden Amazing tips

When I saw the photos that "Celebrating the Joy of Succulents" newsletter subscriber Pat Armanino emailed me of her garden, I knew I wanted to share them. Pat's use of galvanized water troughs as succulent containers is clever and eye-catching. But her main reason for using troughs, she told me, is that they make gardening in a wheelchair possible.

Pat originally used wire to attach ceramic suns to steel troughs. She now simply Gorilla-glues magnets to the backs of decorative items.

"I've grown succulents for 17 years, 13 in a chair," Pat says, "and five with water troughs." Conventional raised beds weren't a good option, because stone, brick or wood surfaces are too wide to lean over comfortably, and are rough-textured. "I'd have to wear long sleeves to not scrape my arms."

Trough rims are narrow and smooth; their sides, thin and strong. The 2-foot-high troughs came from a feed store, but are also available on Amazon. They come with plugged holes, Pat notes, "but we added drain holes, too."

Pat's wheelchair-accessible succulent garden is where a lawn once was. Water drains through the tanks into sand-filled gaps between pavers.

Troughs are filled with layers of rock and garden soil, "topped off with eight inches of potting soil," Pat says. She installed the troughs "after I retired five years ago, and nothing so far has rusted or gone wrong." They're on drip irrigation installed beneath pavers and threaded through drain holes.

The climate of San Mateo, CA, where Pat and her husband have lived for 46 years, is Zone 9, with rainy winters often followed by frost. She covers her succulents "with frost blankets" as needed.

Echeverias, aloes and other succulents thrive in Pat Armanino's garden

Also five years ago, Pat and a friend went on a road trip to obtain succulents "only sold in Southern California," she recalls. Many---including ruffled echeverias---are still going strong. She estimates the total number of succulents in her garden to be around 500.

Pat takes cuttings, pots them up and uses them to fill gaps or give away. Every May, just before Mother's Day, she hosts a charity fundraiser "planting party," now in its 7th year. Guests bring their own pots, "and if they see a plant they like, they take cuttings and plant them," she says.

On a deck outside her dining room, Pat cultivates dozens of colorful succulents in pots large and small.

Pat finds pots at garage sales for an ever-growing collection that includes senecios, haworthias, crassulas and more. "I'm always looking for something I don't have," she says. "Tall pots in back aren't easy to access, but if it takes me all day to get to something, that's OK," she says. "This is my hobby."

Wheelchair accessible garden, propagation area

Agaves predominate an area of the garden that includes Aloe plicatilis left of center, a spiral aloe (Aloe polyphylla) at right, and aeoniums in back.

Pat's plants---plus her grandchildren's---have earned dozens of blue ribbons at the San Mateo County Fair. "But it's not about me," she says. "It's all about showing people what they can do with succulents."

Pat Armanino tends her water-trough succulent garden.

Pat's Plants. Can you help ID the stunning pink echeveria on the right?

Your comments are welcome! Scroll down to let everyone know what you liked about Pat's garden. Do ask questions and share suggestions!

Succulent Container Garden (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

Succulent Container Design

Succulent Container Design Design ideas and must-dos for beautiful, easy-care potted succulents Here you’ll find info on succulent container design in articles and videos. Scroll down to see what interests you and meets your needs. Also enjoy and find inspiration in my gallery of 150+ floral-style arrangements! Succulent Container Gardens, How-To Learn About My Online…

Debra's 7 best succulents

In this free PDF exclusively for subscribers to my "Celebrating the Joy of Succulents" newsletter, you'll learn the 7 best easy-care succulents that thrive in pots and landscapes. Whether you're new to growing succulents or an experienced succulent "parent", you'll love these 7 beautiful plants!

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lunes, 4 de noviembre de 2019

How to Behead and Replant Echeverias Amazing tips

Fancy ruffled echeverias---those large, flowerlike succulents---eventually need to be beheaded and the rosettes replanted. This is a bother, but it comes with a benefit: New clones will form on old, headless stalks. But not always. Here's how to ensure success when you behead and replant prized echeverias.

Photos below are from my videos: How to Slice and Re-root Echeverias, with expert Tina Zucker (4:16), Echeveria Propagation by Beheading, with Aaron Ryan (4:53) and How to Behead Ruffled Echeverias with Marylyn Henderson (3:56).

When to behead

The best time to behead and replant echeverias is when days are warm and nights cool. Generally, in spring and fall and not midsummer or midwinter (in most areas).

Tissue that produces new growth should be green. If it's brown and woody, it probably doesn't have adequate growth cells. So, don't wait forever to get around to beheading and replanting an awkwardly tall echeveria!

Upper stem of an echeveria, showing healed (callused) tissue where the head was removed.

How and where to slice

When beheading, cut straight across, using a sharp knife or clippers. It's surgery, so be clean, swift and smooth.

Slice the trunk an inch or two below the rosette or where there's a gap between leaf axils. It's not about creating an anchor for the cutting, but rather going after cells that are actively growing.

Check for disease

Exposed tissue, either at the bottom of the rosette or the top of the stem, should be firm. If it's hollow or darkened, it's likely weak or diseased. Cut lower (or higher) until you expose healthy tissue.

Aerial roots, beheaded echeveria rosette

Aerial roots growing from the base of a beheaded rosette are bright pink. This head is ready to be planted.

Root formation

Experts prefer to let heads send roots into thin air before replanting them, because going directly into soil risks stem rot. Set the rosette atop an empty pot, with its lowest leaves resting on the rim, in bright shade. The rosette should be higher than the stem (not lying on its side) so nutrients and growth hormones flow downward.

Truncated rosettes may form aerial roots within days, weeks or months...or never. There's no certain way to know. In general, the faster the initial root production, the quicker the new plant will take off.

Soil

Plant newly rooted rosettes in potting soil mixed half-and-half with pumice.

Fertilizer

For a six-inch-diameter pot, mix in 1 tsp. Osmocote 14-14-14 slow-release fertilizer.*

It's normal for the lower leaves of beheaded rosettes to soften and wrinkle.

Watering

Rosettes that are cooling their heels atop empty pots don't need water. They draw on moisture in their leaves, which may become flaccid.

Before planting the rosette, peel away any spent lower leaves (if they come off easily).

Water the newly planted rosette as you would any potted succulent. Optional: Encourage root formation by setting the pot in a saucer of water for a few minutes---enough to moisten the soil about an inch or two up from the bottom. Roots grow more quickly when reaching downward for moisture. Avoid letting soil get soggy.

Light

Let newly planted echeverias rest in bright or dappled shade. Once firmly rooted, they'll require several hours of sun (ideally in the morning, when it's cool) to maintain their color and form.

Learn from the pros

Watch my YouTube videos of experts demonstrating how to behead and replant echeverias:

Click to view: How to Slice and Propagate Echeverias (4:16)

Echeveria Propagation by Beheading video

Click to view: Echeveria Propagation by Beheading

Click to watch: How to Behead Ruffled Echeverias

*affiliate link

How to Propagate Succulents

How to Propagate Succulents Learn the many ways to make more succulents from existing plants Ever wondered how to propagate a certain succulent? For example, lithops (living stones)…is it possible to take cuttings from those thick, molar-shaped leaves? How about ruffled echeverias…can a solitary rosette be made to offset? And stacked crassulas…what do you do when stems are tightly lined with…

Echeveria Info, Photos & Varieties

Echeveria Info, Photos & Varieties How to grow echeverias perfectly, plus an extensive gallery, all ID’d About Echeverias Here is expert advice to help you grow echeverias perfectly, with a gallery of 100+ beautiful, notable species and cultivars. Learn about the plants’ native habitat, optimal care, light and water requirements, flowering, soil, fertilizer, pests, and…

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