Planting Succulents in My Faux Bois Raised Planter Boxes
I have always loved evergreen succulents. With their fleshy leaves and extraordinary forms, succulents are easy to maintain and make excellent container plants - I have quite a few of these popular specimens in my collection.
Last week, during the fourth nor'easter to hit the region in less than a month, my head gardener, Ryan McCallister, planted a selection of succulents in two of my new faux bois planter boxes. I designed these vessels myself for my collection at QVC - to purchase your own, just click on this highlighted link.
Enjoy these photos.
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- Succulents, or fat plants, are those that store water in fleshy leaves, stems, or stem-root structures for times of drought. Succulents are often grown as ornamental plants because of their striking shapes.
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- I love the faux bois features and realistic bark texture on this planter box. It has three drainage holes in the base to release excess water and measures approximately 30-inches long by 15-inches wide. It also comes with its own stand.
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- Ryan starts by placing a layer of gravel at the bottom of the planter. The gravel will provide adequate moisture drainage.
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- Pea gravel, so named because the pieces are pea-sized, is available at garden centers and comes in different colors.
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- Ryan then fills the planter with the appropriate medium. Because succulents don’t like wet roots, it is important to use a soil mixture that will drain well.
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- Ryan also adds some sand to the soil. The right soil mix will help to promote faster root growth, and gives quick anchorage to young roots.
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- Lastly, Ryan sprinkles some osmocote fertilizer. Osmocote particles are known as prills. The beige shell on the prill coats a core of nutrients – nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.
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- Before planting any of the succulents in the box, Ryan adds a sprinkling of water to make the soil a little more firm – this makes it easier to plant the young specimens.
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- Ryan decides to use mostly echeveria. Echeveria is a large genus of flowering plants in the stonecrop family Crassulaceae, native to semi-desert areas of Central America, Mexico and northwestern South America. He is using echeveria in green and shades of purple.
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- First, he trims off anything unsightly, along with any leaves that are too close to the bottom of the stem. This is Echevaria ‘Topsy Turvy’.
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- Echevaria runyonii ‘Topsy Turvy’ has pale leaves that curve upwards and are strongly inversely keeled on the lower surface with leaf tips pointing inwards towards the center of the plant.
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- This planting now has enough stem to be planted securely in the box.
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- Echeverias are some of the most attractive of all succulents and they are highly valued by plant enthusiasts for their gorgeous colors and beautiful rosette shapes. Ryan prepares all the echeveria before starting to plant.
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- I love this selection of succulents – the colors will look so beautiful combined in one vessel.
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- Ryan carefully begins planting the echeveria into the planter box. The Echeveria succulent plant is slow growing and usually doesn’t exceed 12-inches in height or spread.
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- These plants can be planted closely together, so don’t worry if some of them touch each other. The genus is named after the 19th century Mexican botanical artist Atanasio Echeverría y Godoy.
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- Ryan uses garden sod staples to help prop up some of the taller plants.
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- He gently inserts the staple at the bottom of the plant to keep it more secure until it is firmly rooted.
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- Succulent comes from the Latin word “sucus,” which means juice or sap. It’s also a nod to the nourishing leaves that help these plants survive in extremely warm conditions.
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- Shades of green are a given — but you can also find succulents that are blue, purple, pink, orange, and even red!
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- The Echeveria requires very little water to survive – these will be watered about once a week.
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- Many of these echeveria specimens were propagated right here in my greenhouse from other cuttings.
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- To help plant, Ryan also uses tools from Gardener’s Supply Company. This mini trowel works nicely for digging holes in the planter box. https://www.gardeners.com/buy/intervale-mini-garden-tools-set-of-5/8596632.html
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- The Intervale Mini Garden Set comes with five tools – a trowel, fork, a four-tine rake, a two-tine fork, and a dibbler in a pine box. These tools are great for working in tight, small spaces.
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- Ryan uses one of the forks to place the echeveria into this tight space. As the planter box fills with plants, this fork can help get the stem and roots of the plant firmly into the soil without crushing any surrounding specimens.
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- Ryan made sure all empty spaces were filled. It’s nearly complete – all these plants will do so well in this planter box.
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- These troughs are now ready for display in my greenhouse.
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- Succulents thrive in bright light and they should do well in this vestibule between my greenhouse and head house. What are your favorite succulents? Share your comments in the section below. I read every single one of them.
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