A Little Green to Brighten Up The Winter!

At this time of year my life is seriously lacking the greenery I love so much in the summer. Last week I was inspired to bring a bit of greenery inside my home and a hardy succulent planter felt like the perfect way to do it. Making a beautiful succulent planter is not difficult and can be achieved for a much better cost than they are sold for at flower shops and nurseries if you are willing to put in the effort to make it yourself!

What you will Need:

You should be all to find all the supplies you need for making a beautiful succulent planter at your local nursery.

• a pot with a DRAIN (a hole in the bottom…very important!)
• cactus/succulent potting soil – the correct soil is key
• succulents
• small decorative garden stones if desired

Tips for Selecting Succulents:

• get different sizes and heights of succulents
• read the care instructions of all your plants to ensure that the care they require is the same – all the plants will be receiving the same amount of water and sunlight so it is important that they have the same needs
• Don’t be afraid to mix and match plant varieties

How to Make a Succulent Planter

1. Fill your planter with soil
2. Remove your succulents from their pots – this needs to be done gently so that you do not pull their roots right out of the soil surrounding them. Squeeze the sizes of the plastic containers gently until the soil is loosened from the container.
3. Plant your succulents one at a time – clear away a hole of soil in the planter big enough to place the succulent with it’s full root ball and all the soil from the pot. Place the succulent in the hole you have created and cover its root ball with the soil from your planter.
4. Compact the soil gently with your hands around the base of the succulent so it is securely planted in its new soil.
5. Repeat this planting technique with all of the succulents.
6. If desired, cover the soil with decorative gardening stones, this is not necessary, just aesthetic 🙂
7. Water once completed. Even succulents like water to adjust in their new environment.

A Better Look at the Succulent Placement

The way you place your succulents in the planter is all about creating a nice balance. Take a look at how I placed the elements below and how the end result had a sense of balance.

Some tips for placing your succulents to achieve balance:

• place your tallest element first – off to one side is better than right in the centre
• place your biggest element next – far away from your tall element so the arrangement doesn’t become too heavy on one side
• Fill in the space between the two with your NEXT biggest element
• Place your smallest elements in the gaps remaining

How to Care for your Succulents

You have a beautiful succulent planter. Now what?

• Do not be afraid to fully water your succulent planter, so long as your planter has a drain a good watering is only beneficial.
• Allow the soil to completely DRY OUT before you water it again.
• When you do water your succulent, make sure you are watering the soil, not the actual plant.
• Keep in a location that gets indirect sunlight. Succulents love the sun so make sure they have exposure but not direct.
• Rotate your succulent for uniform sun exposure. Once you have found the happy place in your home for your plant, make sure to rotate it every few weeks so that all sides get equal sunlight – this will prevent certain plants from growing in wonky directions in an attempt to reach for the sun

Other Planter Tutorials from Threads & Blooms:

• Spring Indoor Planter

• Summer Outdoor Planter

• Fall Outdoor Planter

• Winter Outdoor Planter

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