Leave it to LA. Designers in that city are using crushed glass to snazz potted plants. The glass, tumbled so the edges are smooth (it’s often from recycled bottles) lends a splash of glamor. Continue Reading →
Tag Archives | Succulent Container Gardens
Grow this Succulent for its Flowers, Then Throw it Away
Prior to hosting the 2011 biennial convention of the Cactus & Succulent Society of America, a San Diego hotel replaced water-thirsty annuals in planters with succulents. After several months, hotel management discovered a surprising benefit: $4,000 in reduced water bills and labor costs. Continue Reading →
Succulent Centerpieces
The ideal Thanksgiving centerpiece…
– Is low so guests can see over it.
– Is festive, in keeping with the holiday.
– Has colors that convey autumn.
– Looks good with your decor and china.
– Doesn’t take up too much table space.
– Is simple to assemble and can be done days ahead.
– Is in a pretty container.
– Is a conversation piece. Continue Reading →
Vertical Gardening Ideas….Tube Planters
I was transformed into a lover and student of vertical gardening after seeing Patrick Blanc’s vertical wall designs years ago in a magazine. I’ve written about vertical gardening on GGW over the past few years. Since then, the field has continued to grow at a quick pace. The horticultural industry is focusing more and more on green roofs and vertical gardening, realizing that these two forms of gardening are not only environmentally beneficial but can help expand peoples’ horizons of how to create a garden when dealing with an unconventional space.
In he 1980s, Pat McWhinney noticed that many rock and waterfall type projects were lacking plant life around the rock formations. Consequently, he created a unique plant system called Tube Planters. I first became aware of Tube Planters, thanks to Debra Lee Baldwin’s book, Succulent Container Gardens. Tube Planter can be used for a variety of purposes in several different settings such as rockscapes, living walls, free standing plant columns, living arches, hillsides and horizontal plantings. For the purposes of this article, I’m focusing on vertical gardening.
Succulents: Q&A
What do tequila, green roofs, Guatemala and lawn removal have in common? They’re among the subjects of questions people have emailed me since Designing with Succulents was released. I recently added a Q&A page to my website. You’re invited to see if your own question is here, or just enjoy the others. Continue Reading →
