Succulent Gardens

Gardeners, especially beginners or those with busy schedules, can't go wrong with a succulent garden. Succulents are a group of plants with thick, fleshy stems, leaves or roots designed to hold water. Cacti, aloe, sedums and "hens and chicks" are just a few examples of succulent plants.

Easy to care for and drought-tolerant, succulents come in all kinds of interesting forms, textures, and colors. Because they're adapted to survive dry conditions, they don't need much supplemental water.

In Florida's rainy, humid climate, most grow best in containers. Start with a shallow clay or terra cotta container with drainage holes. Choose a few succulents with contrasting forms and place them in well-drained media with room to grow. For a finishing touch, top the soil surface with gravel.

UF/IFAS Sites

• Q&A: Bryophyllum daigremontianum

UF/IFAS Publications

• Container Gardening with Succulent "Fat" Plants (PDF)
• Success with Succulents (PDF)
• Succulents Can Be an Excellent Choice for Miami Landscapes (PDF)
• There's More Than Just Cacti (PDF)

Also on Gardening in a Minute

• Aloe Vera
• Cactus
• Carrion Flower
• Container Gardens
• Desert Rose
• Echeveria
• Rock Gardens
• Sedums
• Soap Aloe

Other Sites

• All About Succulents--About.com
• Cactus and Succulent Dish Gardens--Pinellas County (FL) Extension
• Crassula ovata 'Gollum'--Learn2Grow
• Hens-and-Chickens, Sempervivum tectorum--University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service
• Lovely Drought-tolerant Succulents--San Mateo County (CA) Master Gardeners
• Planting a Sempervivum Trough--You Grow Girl
• Succulents--University of Illinois Extension
• Succulents Are Proving to Be Property Savers--New Jersey.com
• Succulents Earn Attention Even in the Southeast--Mississippi State University Extension
• Succulents Take Home Top Honors--Mississippi State University Extension