Succulent Tapestry


Aloe rubroviolacea, Agave 'Kissho Kan' on the extreme right;  Senecio mandraliscae, and various Echeverias.
 
I've posted one or two photos of this succulent tapestry at Roger's before.  Sorry for the repetition:  I wanted to get pictures of the whole bed all into one blog post I could study and refer to in future.
Center top Agave is A. weberi 'Arizona Star'.  Agave attenuata 'Ray of Light' at extreme right.  Aloe spinosissimas to the left of 'Ray of Light'
A circle of Crassula capitella 'Campfire' at lower center, surrounded by Echeveria nodulosa;  Dyckias to the Crassula's above right, possibly Echeveria 'Etna' to the right of the Dyckias, a half circle of Echeveria 'Perle von Nuremburg' below the pot,  Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor' below the Golden Barrel cactus.  Agave weberi 'Arizona Star' is surrounded by a mass of Aeonium 'Kiwi'. 
 A trio of Golden Barrel cactus, Echinocactus grusonii, with Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor' below, and an Echeveria below that.  Above the Echinocactus is green Senecio barbertonicus.


Yucca 'Bright Star' to the right of the tree trunk.  This bed contains two large pine trees that provide shade and needle drop.  I like the arcs and swoops of identical plants, but the circles around the Cacti, not so much. 


 Beaucarnea recurvata (Ponytail "palm"), Euphorbia tirucalli, gravel, river stones, Agave 'Karas Stripes'.
A garden center has the great advantage of not worrying about the eventual size of the plants, nor about the cost, which is considerable.  At summer's end no doubt it will all be pulled out and replaced with something else.  The plants will probably be reused elsewhere.

Comments

  1. Beautiful tapestry, so different with succulent plants. I have one 'Golden barrel' in my conservatory, half the size of the ones you show me. It needs a bigger tub, but It's so difficult to handle.
    Wish you a lot of joy in your piece of Eden.

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    1. Thank you for your wish, Janneke, and the same to you with your beautiful garden. The cactus are difficult to handle, which is why I have almost no cactus at all--they scare me. So I go look at them in other gardens instead.

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  2. Like cut flower arranging, with a slightly longer shelf-life. I can't sing the praises of in-ground succulent tapestries, as examples of either art or gardening, but they do feel a bit more lively and less sterile than the odd quasi-mid century-modern habit of arranging disparate material symmetrically and geometrically. The material Roger's is working with is gorgeous, though. Gorgeous and healthy. Very nice to see.

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    1. One thing about Roger's--they do get the first and best pick of plant materials because of their high traffic, sales, and reputation. They usually charge a dollar or two more than other nearby places, but the grower gives them the cream of the crop.

      Succulent tapestries--in style they echo the Victorian England "bedding out" schemes--a more basic version of which we see here in HOA arrays of wax begonias or marigolds. They offer a fresher take due to different plant selections--but fussiness is trap to avoid, do you think?

      BTW, the tissue death on Aloe suzannae has ceased, and it looks like it will survive--I must ease it back into direct sun and eventually a spot into the ground without setting it back.

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    2. Ah, that's wonderful news about the A suzannae. Very happy for you. We hit 100.4 yesterday, but it's very murky today and may be for another few days or so. Perhaps an ideal time to shift potted materials a bit closer towards full sun.

      In utter agreement with your second para. Not my mug of tea, but the method has its proponents and it's nice to see it done cleanly.

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  3. Thanks for sharing these images, they are inspiring and the combinations are fantastic and very dramatic!

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    1. Happy you enjoyed them. There is quite a wide variety of different plants all together in one place as a sampler of what can be done. It's been fun watching them add more and more plants--it looks a little different every time I visit.

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  4. Gosh, that is one fantastic succulent bed! And a very inspiring example that drought tolerant plants can be beautiful and interesting. But as you mentioned at the end of your post, the cost to plant up this bed alone must be tremendous and not necessary affordable for the average gardener. I guess, we better start propagating...
    Christina

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    1. Yes, either a big budget or some well organized and methodical propagating on a larger scale!

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  5. Beautiful images dear Hoover, such a lovely mix of colours and of succulents, agave and cacti; the Euphorbia tirucalli is wonderful.
    xoxoxo ♡

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    1. It's interesting to study, isn't it? Hard to take it all in at once.

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    2. Yes, there is so much to see!
      xoxoxo ♡

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  6. I could stare at each photo for 15 minutes trying to take it all in. While ultimately the design is too busy for my own personal taste, it's a stunning demonstration of how much variety there is in the succulent world. Not only are the plants perfect, there's no dust, dirt or debris anywhere. I wish my garden looked like clean.

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    1. You are right--there is too much going on with too large a variety of plants to be a design success (a lesson I still need to learn in my own garden). As you said, It is more a demonstration of what can be done with a wide array of succulents than a satisfying design that would work and be in place for several (or many) years.

      They prune back their pine trees pretty hard every couple of years, removing all the old needles, so litter is minimal. But they clean up constantly as well.

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  7. Love these succulent tapestries at Rogers and was hoping to see more photos of them. Beautiful!

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    1. Glad it wasn't boring and repetitive, and that you found it of interest.

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  8. Thanks for all the plant IDs - I'd only have been able to come up with a fraction of these. While I'd never try to replicate something like this, I respect the artistry and there are some nice vignettes I wouldn't be adverse to replicating.

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    1. There's ideas to be gained, if not replicated. It's handy to have the photos to sit and ponder over. I've spotted a few bits I'm guessing they will add to when the stock comes in...

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  9. I would love to see that in person, it all looks so awesome in your photos!

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  10. I'm with you on those circle gimmicks Hoov..but I can remember when these were likely planted with pansies and lobelia, back in the 70's.Big ole' paradigm shift. The succulent circles are better when compared to that ! They are beautiful and in perfect condition in the very forgiving Costa Mesa climate. I hope you'll go back in a few months and give us an update. It is busy as hell as Gerhard said, but in a public space it can work ok. Better than meatball Raphiolepis right ?

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    1. Yes that delicious Sunset 24 climate...that also supported those enormous glorious tuberous begonias (I'm fixated on the memory, yes). Since you think I should visit regularly for observations, I cannot help but obey. Might have to buy some plants while there, though--a terrible burden you force me to endure.

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  11. I am not sure how I feel about arranging succulents this way, but I probably could be persuaded to like it.

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    1. It gives us something to do besides praying for rain.

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