Succulents + a bargain plant stand

My succulent collection is growing! No, but really. All these little squirts were outgrowing their containers, so I knew it was time to consolidate them into a single large planter.

I treated my succulent collection to a new planter and plant stand. It’s the least I could do for them, right? They survive admirably well on the deck, unlike other plants I could mention (RIP lime tree) and they’re beautiful year-round. Most of them strengthen in colour when they’re mildly stressed by cold, heat or drought.

Planting succulents is not complicated. However, they do like well-draining soils in well-draining pots. I picked up a wide, shallow bowl, about 45cm in diameter, and succulent soil mix. (Locally, I like Economy Warehouse for large, minimalist planters.) I also added a thin layer of horticultural charcoal along the bottom, which is fully optional, but I figured it’d at least sweeten the soil and help prevent root rot.

(via Kmart Australia)

I found a cute, modern plant stand at Kmart, of all places. (There’s also taller, single-pot stands, which I’m waiting for my local store to restock.) They come in bright, fun colours, but I’m a fun-hating, no-fun-at-all kind of person, so I spray-painted mine a metallic charcoal.

$17 + paint for a cool plant stand. I like it.

The spiky ones are Haworthia (zebra plant) and Aloe brevifolia. They’re both ready to squeeze out a bunch of pups; just look at the aloe! The flat rosettes are both Sempervivum, with additional pups planted around them. The twiggy plant in the back is a tricolour Aeonium haworthii, and the red ones in front are Sedum varieties, a jelly bean sedum and one I can’t name off the top of my head. The planting may look sparse now, but everything will fill in.

All these succulents prefer temperate/Mediterranean climates over the tropics or the desert, and we only see frost a handful of times per year (USDA Hardiness Zone 9) so they’re pretty happy here. They almost prefer winter over summer, even!

I wouldn’t mind getting a large planter for these other succulents as well, with the branched jade tree as a feature plant and the echeverias forming a carpet underneath. They’ll all keep for now, along with the little slab table they’re on. I’m the first to admit that our deck is a total hodgepodge of furniture right now.

See? Madness. Another wire stand or two (the upright, single-pot ones) would go well out here, plus a not-rough-looking table, plus two slab benches. (I changed my mind about the timber bases I had in mind and decided, with a little help, to fabricate hairpin legs instead. So that’s a whole thing now.) The yellow chair is just floating around the house, showing up where it’s needed.

I love it out here all the same, and since Jamie is out of the country for the next couple of weeks, me and Mishka have it all to ourselves.

It’s you and me, little one. You and me and a bunch of plants to keep us company.

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