A lot of us already garden with succulents but I’m gathering it’s the next hot plant by the number of books on that subject coming across my desk. Some succulent tips from garden writers:
1. It takes only three years for a newly planted succulent garden to fill in; by five years it can look so good that people might assume it has been there twenty. (“Designing With Succulents” by Debra Lee Baldwin)
2. Succulents are naturally more fire-resistant than other plants, and the thicker and juicier a succulent’s leaves, the longer it will take to catch on fire. (“Designing With Succulents” by Debra Lee Baldwin)
3. Add perennials and annuals to a succulent garden. Many new breeds are tolerant of dry conditions and can provide complementary color to the succulent garden, such as agastaches, salvias, primroses and penstemons. (“Hardy Succulents” by Gwen Moore Kelaidis)
4. Although most succulents delight in full sun and tolerate low water, there are a few that are adapted to the shade. Some even thrive in dry shade.(“Hardy Succulents” by Gwen Moore Kelaidis)
5. There are succulents within the hyacinth family, the geranium family and the mint family. OK, that’s not really a tip, but I threw it in because it’s interesting. (“The Garden Succulents Primer” by Gideon Smith and Ben-Erik Van Wyk)
Your favorite places to find/buy unusual succulents in the area?
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