Composition of succulents and cacti. Photo examples

When an amateur florist already has sufficient experience in growing succulents and cacti and knows the features of caring for these plants, then you can try your hand at creativity. We are talking about creating compact mini-gardens from the large and diverse world of desert flora. This is a very exciting process. And even if everything doesn’t work out right away, you will get great pleasure. Everything is not so difficult if you listen to the advice of experienced flower growers.

Some potted succulents sometimes look dull and lonely. And in combination with other plants that are suitable for care and maintenance conditions, they will show themselves in all their glory.

How to create beautiful compositions?

Selection of capacity

First you need to roughly imagine what kind of picture you would like to create - something like a landscape or a composition reminiscent of an extravagant bouquet. The type of container in which the plants will be planted depends on this. Sometimes compositions are created spontaneously, when the gardener accumulates a lot of children, trimmings after the formation of a crown or bush, they are put together into a single picture.

Aquarium: In round aquariums it is quite difficult to create a large composition. But everything is possible if there is a desire. First you need to disinfect the container. This can be done either with alcohol (just wipe) or with a chlorhexidine solution. At the bottom you need to pour crushed charcoal, preferably birch.

Coal absorbs organic residues and prevents mold from developing. Then we add drainage (usually expanded clay) and an appropriate soil substrate in an even layer. Since the aquarium is transparent, for beauty you can alternate the soil with layers of colored sand. Then we plant succulents and cacti depending on the plan.

Clay vase - flowerpot: it is better to use decorative vases with uneven, asymmetrical edges. There should be holes at the bottom for water drainage. The pallet must match the color and size of the pot. Pay attention to the color - it should match the plants. Clay is a hygroscopic material, so it is best suited for succulents. Pots with broken edges and giant shells can also be used as a container for a mini-garden.

Glass vase: There are large chip glasses on sale, as well as flowerpots with legs. They are dealt with in the same way as aquariums. But it’s very beautiful if you plant plants that hang like vines from the edge of the flowerpot. In all cases, wherever an exotic garden is arranged, it is necessary to add decorative details: colored glass pebbles, small fortresses (these are placed in an aquarium for fish), artificial moss and others.

A wooden box or pot made from a piece of solid wood: this method is for true connoisseurs of eco-flower culture. The material is quite difficult to care for and requires careful watering techniques (such a pot should not be wetted too much). If you decide to make a wooden container yourself, be sure to coat it with water-repellent varnish or wood impregnation before planting. Such a pot will look amazing in any interior, delighting you and your guests!

Also read: Master class on filling a florarium from a florist - Alexandra Matyukha

Florariums: Recently it has become very popular to plant succulents and cacti in florariums. Nowadays, you can easily purchase a variety of geometric containers in online stores, and even florariums with ready-made compositions. Succulents grow well in florariums, this is due to the protection of the plant from drafts and temperature changes. Read the master class on filling florariums

Preparatory work

Preparation is an important stage in creating a garden. The quality of work is the key to success. So, what do you need to consider before creating a small masterpiece?

Choose a place where the composition will be located. It is better to place it in a bright place in the apartment, for example, on a windowsill or a lighted corner. Although succulents and cacti are unpretentious plants and can easily exist in partial shade. The main condition: the composition must fit organically into the design and interior of the room or garden.
Think over the composition . It’s worth being creative and deciding what exactly should be in the garden. Think through every little detail.
Buy a pot or container. Specialized stores have a huge selection of containers for every taste and price level.
Prepare seedlings . Everything is simple here.
Prepare soil and drainage . It is better to choose ready-made soil adapted specifically for this type of plant. Fine crushed stone or expanded clay is used as drainage.

Preparatory work directly depends on the chosen design. It is necessary to think through each element to get an interesting composition.

Video about mini-kindergartens and caring for them

There is also a more economical option - find a suitable glass vessel at home and fill it according to your taste and desire.

What plants can be used

The center of the composition should be either in the center or on the edge. For the center, tree-like types of succulents are used. For example, you can use:

Aeonium arboretum;
Dorstenia;
Sedum dendrodium tree (Sedum dendrodium);
Pedilanthus tithymaloides (variety – low) (Pedilanthus tithymaloides v. Nanus);
Crassula Hobbit or Gollum, as well as other varieties of Crassula.
Cotyledon.

Then you need to place two or three small succulents or cacti . Of the succulents, some types of aeoniums (tiered, layered) look very beautiful, Dinteranthus microspermus - a plant that looks like gray stones in appearance, blooms with a yellow flower. You can also plant the hardiest cacti:

Mammillaria;
Echinopsis (Echinopsis);
Rebutia aureiflora rubriflora;
Chamaecereus silvestry.

It is desirable, and even necessary, to leave space in the foreground for small plants , especially if, as they grow, they will hang in small vines along the edge of the container. The more varieties there are, the more interesting the composition will become. Here you can place some of the plants such as:

Weinberg's Sedum (Sedum weinbergii);
Siebold's Sedum (Sedum sieboldii);
Other types of sedum (Sedum).

Pincushion - DIY cactus

There are a variety of photo crafts in the form of a cactus made using different methods. For example, needle beds crocheted, knitted, made of fabric and felt.

Any housewife needs a pincushion; it will be especially pleasant to use it if you know that it was made with your own hands and with love and, of course, it will decorate the work area with its uniqueness.

Proper planting of composition plants - step-by-step instructions

For proper planting, you need to purchase special tools: bamboo tweezers, small spatulas, an artist’s trowel is perfect, even a teaspoon is useful for filling small containers with soil.

We prepare the soil or substrate components. We took some of the ready-made soil for cacti and succulents, drainage, sand and charcoal. All components were purchased in the store. If you take materials from the street, be sure to heat the sand and stones in the oven, or heat them in a frying pan.

Select a container for planting and plants.

Fill the prepared vessel (aquarium, glass vase, ceramic flat pot or deep dish) with drainage to at least ¼ of the height. In transparent containers, you can separate it with a layer of colored sand.

Next, carefully pour in the mixed soil mixture. Leaving 1 cm from the top of the pot, we make depressions in the soil, marking where the plants will be planted.

Carefully straighten the roots of the plants (for cacti, they must be carefully examined and old and rotten or dried roots must be cut out). Make sure that the root collar of the plant is not covered. This is important, if you deepen the neck, then accumulation of moisture and rot may occur.

Also read: How to care for succulents at home

We transfer all the plants, making a composition. We plant ampelous succulents along the edges.
Cover the top layer of soil with sand. And then we decorate with large colored sand or small pebbles. You can take shells or pebbles.

Finally, you can decorate the bare areas with colored pebbles, artificial moss, shells and place decorative elements. You can buy small ceramic gnomes, and if the composition is being prepared for a New Year's gift, then put figurines of Father Frost and the Snow Maiden.

Cactus keychains

The keychains are very functional and will serve as toy and decorative cacti. They will attract attention with their unusualness, prickliness and functionality.

To make it, you need a small amount of yarn of various colors and stocking needles. We knit the intended shape of the cactus (circle, oval), stuff the inside with padding poly and set it aside for a while. Let's take plastic of brown or other tones and mold a pot of the required size and fire it in the oven.

We generously coat the tip of the cactus with PVA glue and attach it to the pot, waiting for it to dry completely. We carefully attach the iron ring to the top of the cactus. You can crochet a flower in bright colors and attach it to the side. It will turn out very beautiful and functional!

Care

Watering

The most difficult and careful action in caring for a mini-kindergarten. Therefore, it is so important to select plants with the same water needs. All succulents love heat and good light, but watering should be scanty enough to just moisten the soil.

If a plant is planted that loves abundant but infrequent watering (there are such tropical succulents), then it is watered pointwise, under the ground near the root. In summer, the composition is watered as the soil dries, which is easiest to check directly with your hands. In winter, once every 2-3 weeks, it’s not worth it more often. All plants are in the resting stage.

When a succulent lacks moisture, it begins to grow roots and release aerial roots. If you water too often or too much, the plants may rot and die. Explain to your family not to water the plants, even if they think it’s time to water. Set a rule that only you do this. Otherwise, compassionate relatives will feel so sorry for the poor flowers that you will have to start all over again.

You should not water mini-gardens with cold water; it is better if you use water at room temperature. This is especially true for small seedlings and watering in winter. It is convenient to use a syringe for watering.

Lighting

Select light-loving plants - this includes all succulents and cacti. Therefore, they need to be placed in a well-lit place - a loggia, a balcony. But this is in the summer, when the night temperature is quite high. You also need to take into account the attitude towards direct sunlight, cacti love it, but some succulents can get burned. To prevent this from happening, use mesh shading.

They also need sunlight in winter, so you need to place the pot close to the window to get as much light as possible. But lighting is necessary if there is a catastrophic lack of light: if the windows are on the first floor and because of the trees, the sun’s rays cannot get through to your window sill. Due to lack of light, plants stretch out, become lethargic, lose all their attractiveness and even change color. Without light, no succulent will grow well!

In summer, with scanty watering, the colors of succulents become brighter; they become especially beautiful if they are left on a balcony or loggia on dry, sunny autumn days. Coolness has a stimulating effect on succulents, they become brighter, the leaves either shine more, or, on the contrary, the edges on the plants increase.

Temperature

Mini-compositions feel great in the temperature regime of our city apartments; in summer the temperature is 20-25 degrees; with regular ventilation, such compositions simply have resort conditions. You can put them on the loggia, on the balcony, on the terrace of a country house.

Also read: Photo instructions for replanting Sansevieria

In winter, in our apartments, succulents and cacti suffer from lack of lighting, but the temperature should be about 10-15 degrees. This can be done by isolating the window sill from the heat that comes from the central heating radiators. At low temperatures, succulents freeze and during this period you can not water them at all, they do not need extra moisture. Then you will avoid pulling the flower.

Humidity

All succulents and cacti come from hot, dry places, so they don't need humid air. They love dry air and ventilation. You can’t just put compositions in a draft. Although the plants are not delicate, and can tolerate short-term inconvenience, constant exposure to a draft threatens deformation of the stems and loss of leaves. High humidity has a depressing effect not only on succulents, but also on cacti. Especially during the flowering period.

The soil

There are many options for making soil mixtures. Ready-made mixture purchased at a flower shop. For a novice amateur gardener, one well-tested substrate composition scheme is enough:

The soil for the compositions is made on the basis of peat. It is better to buy a ready-made peat mixture (preferably made in Germany), taking a certain amount of peat - you need to check it, remove sticks and other debris;
Then add perlite, about one third of the peat mixture. It gives the substrate looseness and water permeability;
It is imperative to add fine expanded clay (3-5 mm in diameter) to the mixture. It is put in the same amount as you put in perlite. Expanded clay is needed by the roots, as they must cling to support;
Add charcoal and sand. Coal protects the roots from rotting, and sand helps pass moisture through the soil. Some gardeners plant succulents in sand alone, adding expanded clay and coal to the bottom of the vessel, without using soil or peat.

Transfer

Replanting plants in a mini-garden rarely happens, but if you suddenly decide to replace one plant with another, more extravagant one, you need to carefully use a flat wooden stick to free the roots from the soil and the roots of other succulents. Often the roots are intertwined quite tightly, you can try to slowly pull the plant out.

If you decide to transplant the entire composition into a larger pot or a more beautiful vase, then this should be done using the transshipment method. Try to free all the plant roots from the remnants of the old soil and, when planting in a new container, distribute them evenly over the entire area. At this point, you can add new plants if you consider this addition necessary.

Fertilizer

You can fertilize succulents from March to November, once a month, with special fertilizers with a low nitrogen content. Dividing according to instructions. The photo shows how much dry fertilizer you need to take per 0.5 liter of water.

Selection of container and substrate

The choice of container depends on the selected composition. If you will use a lot of small, varied plants, it is better to arrange it as a picture or place it in a flat box . If you want to stop at 2-3 species, you can place them in an aquarium or glass vase, decorating them with additional elements. When creating an entire garden, it is better to place succulents in separate pots and arrange them so that they complement each other and decorate the space.

Succulents look good in clay dishes . In addition, there are original solutions: plants can be placed in a wide glass on a thin stem, in an elegant high-heeled shoe, in a huge shell, or in a beautiful box. Some people make a garden in a piece of a cut tree trunk. A real natural corner looks very beautiful and natural. The wood inside and outside must be treated with a water-repellent coating or special varnish.

Before planting the plants, the bottom of any container must be lined with stones. This will be drainage. Then a layer of charcoal is needed. It perfectly helps prevent the appearance of fungi. Next, the sand is mixed with a nutrient soil composition.

Often in garden stores you can find a soil mixture designed specifically for succulents.

Photo ideas for creating succulent gardens

If you still have questions, you can ask them in the comments to the article! Thank you for reading us, good luck in your creative flower growing business!

How to Decorate Cactus and Succulents with Lights 2022 – Home – Nc to do

In the Southwest and other arid climates, cacti and succulents often replace ornamental shrubs and trees as landscaping. With the philosophy of playing up what you already have rather than trying to hide it or replace something else, home decorators have been dazzling cacti with holiday lights for years.

So how do you light a succulent or spiny cactus? Very carefully, for starters. Wear a pair of suede or leather gloves that cannot be pierced by the needle-like cactus spines, which can even pierce the strongest types of gloves.

Unique shapes create a magical screen

When it comes to decorating desert plants for the holidays, no one does it better than the team at the spectacular Ethel M Chocolates Cactus Botanical Garden in Henderson, which is the largest in Nevada and one of the largest collections of its kind in the world. Based on the English landscape model of naturalistic design, the Ethel M Cactus Botanical Garden features four acts of cacti, succulents and other drought-tolerant plants and trees.

Their annual holiday display, Cactus Garden Lights, features over 1 million lights throughout the landscape and the display is free to view from mid-November through New Year's Day. The adjacent factory was named after founder Forrest Mars' mother and is the company's gourmet chocolate and candy business.

Continue to 2 of 9 below. 02 of 09

Lighting Desert Plants for the Holidays

Golden Bulgarian cacti are decorated with string lights. Lisa Hallett Taylor

It's a little more time-consuming and specialized task to decorate cacti, succulents, yuccas and oddly-shaped desert plants with string lights. Here are some tips and tricks:

Invest in a good pair of gloves that will keep thorns and needles out. Also, wear long sleeves.
For taller cacti or hard-to-reach branches, consider getting a gripping, grasping, or grasping tool. Some are even equipped with lights. Doing this carefully allows you to wrap the cactus or limb without having to touch it.
The barrel cactus is best wrapped in one color of string lights, such as red or white, to make them ring.
Sheer lights draped over a cactus are much simpler than wrapping string lights, although they have a different effect and do not outline the shape. Most are LED and some are solar, although they require several hours of sunlight to operate.
Use a light hand when decorating—don't stretch the light strand or wrap it around the cactus.
Some of the thinner specimens may benefit from more traditional incandescent bulbs, which can create enough heat (not heat) to keep the cactus or succulent from freezing.
A laser flood or spot light is an easy way to illuminate a desert garden without damaging your plants. Every year they go up in price, and the technology improves.
Using a smart LED light bulb like iLumi

A magical mini-garden on the windowsill! Let's compose a composition together