I have pulled Echeveria 'Lola' and Aeonium 'Floresens' from Saturday's garage sale. I came up with something different and perhaps exciting for them.
It all started when deer nibbled on some of my deer-resistant plants I had in a 15-gallon grow bag outside the greenhouse. I potted the remnants in a smaller bag and moved it to a caged location at home, and also used the dirt for a few other pots. I ended up with half a bag of dirt and nothing to put in it....
I had been thinking about converting part of a planting bed inside the greenhouse to a succulent area as the first step toward converting the entire bed this fall. Eventually I planted the first of my tomatoes and peppers there instead. But a 15-gallon grow bag is almost the same area. I mixed the remaining soil with a cubic foot of pumice and some coco coir and filled the bag with that. In that I planted three Sempervivums (all from the Chick Charms line) and one of the two Delospermas.
- Sempervivum 'Berry Blues'
- Sempervivum 'Appletini'
- Sempervivum 'Strawberry Kiwi'
- Delosperma 'Fire Spinner'
I should know better, but I scattered broken pottery on the surface in an attempt to be artistic:
In addition to the excess grow bag, I also had two large ceramic pots that until recently held fake plants. There was enough of the soil mixture to fill those two pots also, with some left over. I decided to plant 'Lola' in the bigger pot based on a photo on the Mountain Crest Gardens web site showing a clump of 'Lolas' filling a large pot. I want that. I picked 'Floresens' for the other pot because it is quite active right now and I want to give it a chance to stretch out.
Lots of room now for 'Lola' offsets to make their appearance:
This is the image from Mountain Crest Gardens that helped send me down this path. I would settle for a small percentage of that.
I often cite Mountain Crest Gardens as a source of information. When comparing prices, Ramsey's is the cheapest, Succulents Depot and others are in the middle, and Mountain Crest is the most expensive. But they have the most extensive online selection, and unlike other dealers they have good descriptions for each plant. Sometimes it is worth paying up.
Taking the place of 'Lola' and 'Floresens' in Saturday's lineup are 'Doris Taylor' and 'Cubic Frost.' Yes, I just got Doris. I'm putting a $50 price tag on it. Everything has its price. If nothing else it is something that will get people to stop and look. 'Cubic Frost' has three nice rosettes and I really should divide it and sell the pieces. But I put a $35 price tag on it and we'll see if it draws any interest.
Really, I just hope I sell my old bike and at least one of the three orthopedic ice machines. Update: I sold the bike. The ice machines, not so much.