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Netanya Sadoff
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Succulents are hot right now. Everyone wants them. Many of us just do not have the bright light required for indoor succulents, but we may have the light needed to plant an outdoor succulent dish garden. It can live happily on a patio table, on a front stoop or even on a stump in the perennial bed— anywhere the dish can bake in full sun for at least a couple of hours each day.
With the endless variety of shapes, colors and textures, a succulent dish garden is like a piece of sculpture for your outdoor space. Succulents are available everywhere now, but they can still be a little pricey. If you’ve got a window that gets at least a few hours of bright sunlight, you can overwinter a dish with nonhardy varieties indoors. From my experience, echeverias overwinter the best, so if you would like to create a heritage succulent dish that will live with you for years, travelling indoors and out depending on the season, consider a framework of these.
A container of succulents and moss roses
Shallow dish containers are readily available in garden centers, home goods stores, used shops or online. Succulents do not have extensive roots, so a 4- to 5-inch container is deep enough.
Succulents demand good drainage, and it’s easy to drill a drainage hole with a ceramic tile bit if your container lacks one. If your container is plastic, a box cutter will do the job. Add rocks or terra cotta shards to the bottom of the container for added drainage. Fill the container with a planting mix specifically for succulents or cacti or create your own mix by incorporating one part sand with
two parts standard potting mix to improve drainage in the dish. Consider incorporating a slow-release fertilizer at planting time.
Echeverias with their sturdy rosette forms overwinter well indoors and shine outside. You could fill an entire dish with them and have a wonderful tapestry of succulents. Sedum offers many forms
that branch and trail. Crassulas are upright and make striking focal points. Sansevieria (snake plants, now included in genus Dracaena) work well in an outdoor succulent garden and overwinter nicely as they require less light.
Whichever varieties you choose, strive for a mix of shapes, colors and textures. Add annua portulaca or moss rose for pops of color.
To accommodate a patio table umbrella, I crafted a dish garden with a center hole. It’s a simple DIY project using a plastic saucer and an empty case that once housed stacks of CDs. You could use a length of PVC piping cut to size instead of the CD case.
Using a box cutter, I cut a hole in the saucer and removed the base of the case, then placed the case inside the saucer to create a donut-shaped planter. The planting medium holds the case in place. I planted out the garden, then put it on the table before threading the umbrella pole through it. Instant table décor!
—E.J
Place the dish garden where it will get as much sunlight as possible. With sufficient water it will thrive in full, all-day sun. (Remember: succulents love water, they just hate wet feet.) But it can thrive on less sun. With a couple of hours of direct sun and a few more of indirect sun, it will live happily.
This article originally appeared in the May/Jun 2021 edition of Northern Gardener® Magazine.
Eric Johnson is a writer, graphic designer and lifelong gardener based in Roseville, Minn. and western Wisc.
gardendrama.com | @gardendrama
The post Outdoor Succulent Dish Garden appeared first on Northern Gardener.
With the endless variety of shapes, colors and textures, a succulent dish garden is like a piece of sculpture for your outdoor space. Succulents are available everywhere now, but they can still be a little pricey. If you’ve got a window that gets at least a few hours of bright sunlight, you can overwinter a dish with nonhardy varieties indoors. From my experience, echeverias overwinter the best, so if you would like to create a heritage succulent dish that will live with you for years, travelling indoors and out depending on the season, consider a framework of these.
A container of succulents and moss roses
The Pot and the Potting
Shallow dish containers are readily available in garden centers, home goods stores, used shops or online. Succulents do not have extensive roots, so a 4- to 5-inch container is deep enough.
Succulents demand good drainage, and it’s easy to drill a drainage hole with a ceramic tile bit if your container lacks one. If your container is plastic, a box cutter will do the job. Add rocks or terra cotta shards to the bottom of the container for added drainage. Fill the container with a planting mix specifically for succulents or cacti or create your own mix by incorporating one part sand with
two parts standard potting mix to improve drainage in the dish. Consider incorporating a slow-release fertilizer at planting time.
Mix and Match Plants
Echeverias with their sturdy rosette forms overwinter well indoors and shine outside. You could fill an entire dish with them and have a wonderful tapestry of succulents. Sedum offers many forms
that branch and trail. Crassulas are upright and make striking focal points. Sansevieria (snake plants, now included in genus Dracaena) work well in an outdoor succulent garden and overwinter nicely as they require less light.
Whichever varieties you choose, strive for a mix of shapes, colors and textures. Add annua portulaca or moss rose for pops of color.
Patio Table Garden
To accommodate a patio table umbrella, I crafted a dish garden with a center hole. It’s a simple DIY project using a plastic saucer and an empty case that once housed stacks of CDs. You could use a length of PVC piping cut to size instead of the CD case.
Using a box cutter, I cut a hole in the saucer and removed the base of the case, then placed the case inside the saucer to create a donut-shaped planter. The planting medium holds the case in place. I planted out the garden, then put it on the table before threading the umbrella pole through it. Instant table décor!
—E.J
How much sun?
Place the dish garden where it will get as much sunlight as possible. With sufficient water it will thrive in full, all-day sun. (Remember: succulents love water, they just hate wet feet.) But it can thrive on less sun. With a couple of hours of direct sun and a few more of indirect sun, it will live happily.
This article originally appeared in the May/Jun 2021 edition of Northern Gardener® Magazine.
Eric Johnson is a writer, graphic designer and lifelong gardener based in Roseville, Minn. and western Wisc.
gardendrama.com | @gardendrama
The post Outdoor Succulent Dish Garden appeared first on Northern Gardener.