Poolside Succulent Planters in Coconut Grove, Miami

Take a quick look at a job I did recently in Coconut Grove, Miami... This was for a private residence, the client already owned the planters and wanted them completely redone as two pairs. For the centerpiece plants I chose Euphorbia trigona 'African Milk Tree' (a succulent) and the Cereus repandus f. monstrosa cactus, also known as Cereus peruvianus f. monstrosa and the Peruvian Apple Cactus.

I made two sets of identical arrangements, using the "thriller, filler, and spiller" method - which is basically a recipe for an aesthetically pleasing planter with balance. This consists of a showstopping centerpiece plant (the thriller), bountiful filler plants, and an intriguing plant that spills over the edge of the planter. I surrounded each large centerpiece plant with a variety of hearty succulents. First choice, my classic "filler" Sedum nussbaumerianum for its gorgeous lime green and orange highlights, but more importantly: this is a very rugged succulent, it grows in shade (loses its orange tips), grows in sun (turns orange), and it can take a lot of water or go without for long periods of time with no problem.

Euphorbia trigona 'African Milk Tree', Sedum nussbaumerianum, Graptosedum 'California Sunset', and Portulacaria afra 'Elephant Bush' (variegated and non-variegated)

Another hearty, beautiful, and drought tolerant succulent "filler" is Graptosedum 'California Sunset', which starts out a soft sage green and transforms into a stunning deep pink delight with lots of sun, hence the name. And finally, Portulacaria afra 'Elephant Bush' (variegated and non-variegated), which make excellent "spillers," tumbling down the side of the planter for added form and visual interest. The Elephant bush comes variegated (lime with white striations) and non-variegated (dark green), but I've noticed there's also a certain type with very thick woody stems, and another with a soft trailing stem (pictured above). I plan to do a post on that once I research it further, I have both types so I'll show you the difference with some eye candy from my garden.

       

I also threw in a few cuttings from my own garden of Graptopetalum paraguayense, known as the Ghost Plant, a gorgeous trailing succulent that starts out a pale blue-grey and turns a dreamy purple in full sun.  Also: Stapelia grandiflora, one of my favorite succulents for its stunning, gorgeous, incredible (and stinky) flower.  You can see my other Stapelia posts here:  Stapelia gigantea succulent and Stapelia succulent flowers.

Anyhow, upon further inspection, the pots did have drainage holes, however they were compacted with a dense soil (not good for succulents and cacti) and did not have a layer of rocks at the bottom.  I firmly believe a good thick layer of volcanic rocks help with aeration and drainage.  Rocks help keep the drainage hole from clogging up with soil, and allow air to circulate up into the pot from the bottom.  Why volcano rock?  Well, you can really use any rock you have on hand or prefer, but here's why I recommend volcanic rock...  Aside from my love for the ones that look like dark red sea coral, the bottom line is volcanic rock is super cheap, beautiful, and most importantly: super porous, which means great drainage and aeration.  I love to use volcanic rock to topdress pots and fill large pots that I don't want to fill up completely with soil, as succulents and cacti grow better in more shallow soil (unless the cactus is mature and outgrowing the pot).  So I redid all four pots with a layer of drainage rock, fresh soil and fertilizer, and gorgeous plants that should grow in nicely.

I'll leave it at that.  The client was very pleased and even invited us back for an encore job, so cheers to that!  Excuse the dull photos, the sun was nowhere to be found on the day of this job.  

If you have any questions about these plants or would like more information on Inspire Bohemia's succulent and cacti garden design services, please don't hesitate to e-mail or call us at 305.989.7242.

Cereus repandus/peruvianus f. monstrosa 'Peruvian Apple Cactus', Sedum nussbaumerianum, Graptosedum 'California Sunset', and Portulacaria afra 'Elephant Bush' (variegated and non-variegated)

(All images in this post are property of Inspire Bohemia and copyright protected, please do not use without written permission, thank you.)