The Succulent Workshop was a Complete Success.

The weather was perfect and the gardens here in our Rainbow yard couldn’t have been more beautiful and serene.

Marilyn Guidroz of Marilyn’s Garden Design was in top form.  Marilyn has always been fascinated with the process of creating living art: and her extensive knowledge of plant materials along with her artist’s eye allows her to do just that.   She is a great speaker, her presentation was very informative.

Here is Marilyn’s list of “Tips for Success”:

Rule #1    Select pot or container first to suit the spot where you want it placed.

Rule #2    Select the succulents for the pot according to size, contrast, repetition, texture, color and point of viewing.

Rule #3    Select the theme before planting and use a top dressing of rocks
        and other decorative materials to complete the composition last.

A few other ‘gems’ she shared with us:

Consider taking your container with you to the nursery when purchasing your succulents, (unless you are purchasing the container at the same time).  This way you can select color, shapes, sizing to better suit the container, rather than guessing.

When using a very large or deep container, use an inverted plastic pot and gravel rather than filling the whole pot with all soil.

Cover the drain hole with screen and a paper towel or coffee filter to discourage insects.

Invest in a good quality moisture meter – you will save many, many plants by avoiding over or under watering.

We also want to thank Connie O’Brien from Emerald M Growers of Fallbrook for supplying the containers, soil and succulents for the workshop.

Marilyn will be back in September to share tips about Propagating and Creating Living Walls.  Watch our calendar section for dates and times of this and other upcoming workshops.

See you there!