Above: Laura Eubanks of Design for Serenity demonstrates her succulent-topped pumpkin method. It's also a featured project in my book, Succulents Simplified.
Follow Laura's simple DIY and your succulent pumpkin will last months. It'll rot sooner if pierced or cut, so avoid doing that. At any time, you can remove the succulents and plant them in a pot or the ground.
Laura pioneered the concept in 2011. It caught on immediately, becoming as popular for fall decor as wreaths are for the holidays. After several years of making pumpkins for sale, Laura went on to specialize in succulent landscapes.
Laura Eubanks during our photo shoot for Country Gardens magazine
Pumpkin How-To
Pumpkin how-to from Succulents Simplified
So simple! Basically, Laura coats the top of the pumpkin with spray glue, adds dry moss, then hot-glues succulent cuttings and seed pods to the moss. Incredibly, hot glue doesn't harm the succulents, which eventually root through the dried glue into the moss.
Shop for SUCCULENT CUTTINGS on Amazon and from Mountain Crest Gardens. (Affiliate links.)
Spray adhesive for attaching the moss Click to order from Amazon (affiliate).
Caring for Your Pumpculent
- Place in a cool, dry location atop a trivet or piece of cardboard for air circulation.
- Provide bright light so cuttings keep their color and don't stretch.
- Spritz with water once or twice a week to moisten the moss, but not so much that water pools.
- Protect from frost.
Pumpkin Gallery
Borrow these examples for your own succulent pumpkins. Many are by the master: Laura Eubanks; or Bay Area Succulent Fanatic (and pumpculent fashionista) Laura Balaoro. I like them all, but IMHO, pumpkins in colors other than orange, or with bumps, stripes, blotches or dots, inspire the most interesting designs.
I'll post more pumpkin photos as I run across eye-catching and innovative ones. Check back! -- Debra
More Fall-Winter projects
Make a Succulent Cornucopia
[With Video] A succulent cornucopia makes a refreshing update on the traditional Thanksgiving centerpiece, and then after the holiday, you can remove the plants and pot them. As early as midsummer, craft stores begin stocking holiday containers like this wicker cornucopia
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…
Succulent Christmas Tree Holiday Centerpiece
[With Video] Make a succulent Christmas tree for your holiday tabletop centerpiece. This topiary cone with cuttings inserted into the moss needs less care than a floral arrangement and lasts much longer.
Holiday Decorating with Succulents
Holiday decorating with succulents This time of year, the succulent elves bundle up, go into the garden, and transform it into a holiday wonderland. Should I reward them with cocoa, or considering their size, chocolate chips? When you’re not much bigger than a caterpillar, you take your life in your hands when you decorate a serrated succulent. But…
The post Succulent Pumpkin Designs, DIY, Video appeared first on Debra Lee Baldwin. Copyright © Debra Lee Baldwin.
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