Showing posts with label strawberry pot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label strawberry pot. Show all posts

Monday, October 3, 2011

Garden Update: Succulent Strawberry Pot Planter



Hello world!


I hope you're all doing well! How's the weather in your neck of the woods?  It's another sunny day here in Miami and I'm feeling great, mostly because I got to spend some time with my love yesterday after a few days of not seeing him - he just got a new job and has been adjusting to the new schedule and I've been busy with college work.  Also, I had a productive weekend and my classes went really well today, leaving me in a great mood!  Actually, I'm still on campus right now, I didn't want to leave just yet because the library was calling me...  What was it saying?  It was saying if I go home I'll get distracted with a million things, but if I seek refuge in the silence of the library I could get a lot done - namely, this blog post and then some reading for Wednesday.  So, here I am. I  love the FIU library, though these days it's packed to the max with people in every corner...  I couldn't find myself a place to sit at any of the tables or independent study booths so I'm currently sitting Indian-style on the floor in the Greek Mythology aisle!   I could be here all night!

This entire post is on the bright blue strawberry pot that I filled with succulents and cacti and gave to my mother this past Mother's Day (last shown in this post).  As you can see it totally rocks, in fact I'm starting to consider it one of my best planters yet, it's definitely the most diverse!   I think it's doing really well especially because of the extra drainage and aeration provided by all the openings around the pot.  When I filled this planter I made sure to add a thick layer of large rocks at the bottom, and since its openings aren't the kind with little lips/cups (which keep soil, plants and rocks in better), I also clustered rocks at the mouth of each opening as a barrier to keep the rocks in and to support plants while their roots start to grow and form an anchor in the soil.  There are lots of different succulents and cacti in this planter, most are pictured and named in my Garden Update from July in case you're interested in their names.

This planter is really blowing my mind with how well it's doing, I already joked with my mom that I wanna take it with me when I move out again, haha!  Of course I'd never do that because I gave it to her for Mother's Day, but I definitely have to make myself an identical one!  I can't get over how well it photographs too!  Do any of you have a strawberry pot planter filled with succulents and cacti, if so what has your experience been like so far?

Have a great afternoon!

Recent garden posts you might like:
Garden Update - September
Garden Update: Random Stuff
Garden Update: Garden Tour Update
Sunny Sunday
Garden Update - July











The amazing Stapelia Grandiflora cactus continues to grow bud after bud which results in a constant blooming of flowers.... Here is one flower bud before it opened....


And here it is the next day after opening.......

Yes, AWESOME - every time!



Check out how many flower stalks these Echeveria's have put out! It's salmon pink flower mania at the top of the strawberry pot! Such delicate perfection...



Now, for me this is a first - seeing a dried out flower stalk sprout a new plant from the tip! Has anyone out there ever seen this happen on one of their succulents with dried out flower stalks? Wow, as if succulents weren't hardy and resilient enough already, this is truly a wonder of nature!




All images in this post are my personal photographs, please do not reuse them without my written permission. If you would like to use any of the photos on this blog of my home and garden please contact me at InspireBohemia(at)gmal(dot)com - Thank you!

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Weekend Garden Goodies


As I mentioned on Monday, this past weekend was so unbearably hot in Miami, Florida that I could not bring myself to garden.  However, the succulent-obsessed part of me certainly found the motivation to take a trip to Home Depot and Lowe's!  The possibility that there's a new succulent or cactus that I don't have just sitting out there waiting for me is far too great a temptation to resist!  Am I the only one who feels this way??  Haha, I doubt it!

I didn't find anything very impressive at Home Depot but I scored big at Lowe's!  In fact, lately I've noticed that Lowe's tends to have a larger selection and variety of succulents and cacti, along with specific plant names and bio - you'll see what I mean later on in this post.  On the downside, Lowe's (at least the one near my house) doesn't have a large selection of other plants like Home Depot does.  But who cares, I was on a succulent mission and that's all that mattered at the time!


As you will see, I also took a few photos of some nice prearranged decorative planters filled with various succulents that were on sale at Lowe's.  They're cute, but I can do better!  But hey I figured why not snap a few images to share some additional garden/planter ideas and inspiration with my readers.
 
Aaaaaand...  The happiest part of my excursion....  I found some AWESOME little Strawberry Pots for $4.15 on clearance!  My eyes did a little pop and I glanced around the isle as I jumped up and down and loaded the cart, hehe.  I have been on the lookout for some small strawberry pots with good drainage holes for a while, which these have, yay!  I can already envision an amazing finished product once planted with some succulents!  Swoon - they are going to look fabulous!  I can't wait to share images with you once I get down to planting and finish a few, in the meantime scroll on for photos of my garden loot.  Oh, and if the mini strawberry pot planters tickle your fancy too then you better hurry on over to Lowe's for the $4.15 cent clearance deal!!

What about you, have you found any great deals or plants lately?  Please share!

Have a great day!  ;)

Other garden posts you may enjoy:


Sweet little wood birdhouses planted with various succulents, looks like different types of Sedum or Crassula (the green plants) and maybe some type of Kalanchoe (the red plant).  I suppose for $14.98 they make a cute gift, but all I can think is how I could make a nicer one for way less.... :)


These small wall mounted baskets were filled with all sorts of succulents: Jade, Kalanchoe, Burro's Tail, Aeonium, Euphorbia tirucalli a.k.a Fire Sticks, Portulacaria Afra a.k.a. Elephant Bush and so on...  I forgot to catch the prices, they are most likely in the $12-15 range.





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And now, for my plant purchases....  As you can see I took the liberty of photographing all of their labels this time - for my records and yours.  Unlike Home Depot, the succulents and cacti sold at Lowe's are all labeled with their specific species name and a brief bio including origin and unique care instructions.  Sweet!  That's a big plus for Lowe's and the nursery farm they buy their plants from!  So scroll on for plenty of images and information, I have input nicknames wherever applicable...
Senecio radicans glauca a.k.a. String of Bananas
*chuckles*

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Kalanchoe longiflora coccinea


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Kalanchoe blossfeldiana hybrid

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Crassula platyphylla a.k.a. Crassula Burgundy

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Sedum adolphii a.k.a. Golden Sedum

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Crassula marginalis rubra variegata a.k.a. Calico Kitten

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Isn't this little cactus cool!? Its name is even cooler...Euphorbia anoplia a.k.a. Tanzanian Zipper Plant! 

::Important::
According to the label, if you get sap from this cactus on your hands you must wash immediately, so obviously don't ingest it either!  Apparently all Euphorbias have poisonous sap that can irritate the skin and eyes, cause swelling of the tongue and the walls of the stomach and intestine.... According to this site,
"For the taking of cuttings and all other activities where Euphorbia sap could be present, you should wear rubber gloves and safety goggles. As even the invisible vapour of the sap can cause discomfort, you should provide for adequate aeration.
Never touch your eyes while working with the plants.
Afterwards wash your hands very carefully and clean all tools.
Wash yourself again."
So beware folks, especially if you have small children and/or pets!  For more information on Euphorbias see here and here.

Haworthia coarctata


Aeonium x hybrid a.k.a. Aeonium Lily Pad





And this funky beautiful plant did not have a label, but it looks like it's in the same family as the Christmas Cactus (Schlumbergera and Hatiora hybrids) because there are many different variations, for example the Easter cactus and the Thanksgiving cactus.  However, please correct me if I'm wrong!  See here for more information.



And last but not least... the planters I've been raving about.... here's a shot of the whole gang...

And then each color got their own photo shoot....hehe...  Red and platinum! (by the way these were the only two colors I saw)... 





Pretty sexy huh!?  They rock my world!  And just wait until I fill them!  ;)
Oh, and this little guy below was $4.89 and he has a drainage hole too....saweeeeeet!







(All images in this post are my personal photographs and property of my blog Inspire Bohemia.  Please contact me at InspireBohemia@gmail.com if you are interested in using any of my personal photos throughout this blog.  Thank you!)