Tag Archives: Crassula

27 Aug

9 Lovely Plants for Beautiful Indoor Foliage

Indoor plants are a great way to freshen up your house. They add softer and natural touch to your home interior. However, selecting the right indoor plants for your home interior is a bit difficult especially when you do not have a green thumb. This post lists some lovely indoor plants that produce beautiful foliage and can be grown in most indoor conditions.

Ficus lyrata / Fiddle Leaf Fig Tree

The first plant in the list is Ficus lyrata or Fiddle Leaf Fig tree. I would highly recommend this plant if you are looking for a fresh, bold and a modern look to your home interior. With its prominent and lush green leaves, Ficus lyrata makes a nice foliage plant. Ficus lyrata likes a well-lit spot (preferably near a window) and slightly moist soil. It is not a demanding plant.

Ficus lyrata has a vigorous root systems therefore it should be repotted annually in a bigger pot size until the plant reaches the desired size. Larger plants should be provided with a fresh layer of top soil every year.

Sansevieria trifasciata / Snake Plant

Sansevieria trifasciata or Snake Plant is known for its unusual and beautiful foliage. The plant produces succulent upright leaves with beautiful shades of green, white and sometimes yellow variegation.  Sansevieria trifasciata makes a nice indoor accent plant. It requires bright sunlight and moderate watering in a well-drained soil. The plant can be propagated easily from division.

Philodendron

Philodendrons are widely grown for their beautiful foliage. Easily grown indoors, most species of Philodendrons produce large and lush green foliage that creates a dramatic effect in a home interior. Most Philodendrons require moderate light and slightly moist soil.

Crassula

Though not common, Crassulas are nice foliage plants to grow indoors. They offer a large variety of color, size and texture. Most Crassulas form small clumps of rosette-forming plants. They are suitable for growing in an indoor dish garden. Like other succulent plants, Crassulas are hardy plants that love indirect light and slightly moist conditions in a well-drained soil.

Ficus elastica / Rubber Plant

Commonly known as  rubber fig, rubber bush, rubber tree, rubber plant, or Indian rubber bush, Ficus elastica is a popular houseplant. This hardy plant can be grown in almost any indoor condition. For best results, provide your Rubber Plant with bright light and water only when the soil is slightly dry.

Zamioculcas zamiifolia / Zanzibar Gem

Zamioculcas zamiifolia are not usually seen in indoor settings but this lovely plant makes an excellent indoor plant because of its attractive foliage. Commonly known as Zanzibar Gem, Zamioculcas zamiifolia is an easy plant to grow and maintain for indoor foliage. In fact, it can easily sustain a little neglect. For best foliage, provide your plant with bright light and ample water. Water only when the soil is dry.

Pachira aquatica / Malabar Chestnut

Pachira aquatica is another plant to try, if you are looking for something unusual. This lovely plant produces nice foliage and does not require regular repotting. Pachira aquatica loves ample sunlight and sufficient water. When growing it indoor, make sure that you keep the soil moist and remove dead leaves regularly.

Yucca elephantipes / Stick Yucca

Yucca elephantipes or Stick Yucca is one of my favorite plants to grow in indoor settings. This hardy plant produces striking foliage and does not require special attention. It is a slow growing plant and will grow happily in its pot for many years.

Aloe vera

It is rather unusual to see this plant growing indoors, but you cannot beat this plant for its ability to adapt to almost any indoor conditions. Aloe vera produces fresh and succulent leaves. This lovely plant grows nicely in compact corners, and requires only occasional watering and bright sunlight.

 

10 Jul

15 Beautiful Landscape Designs using Succulent Plants

I am a big fan of succulent plants – they are versatile, offer a great variety of shapes, sizes and colors, and are easy to group with their cousins. Traditionally, succulents have been grown in pots as display or accent plants. In recent years, they have become popular landscape plants. Modern landscape designers are now appreciating succulent plants for their architectural forms and using them in traditional as well as experimental landscape designs.

Most succulent plants grow solitary or form small groups. They rarely outgrow their environment and thus make good plants for grouping with their cousins. You can find succulent plants in all sizes – we ranging from mat-forming ground covers to low-growing foliage plants and from large globe-forming succulents to tall and cylindrical plants. Most succulent plants have similar requirements which makes it easier to group succulents plant from different genera in a landscape design. They require well-drained soil, less frequent watering, and occasional cutting or division.

Some common succulent plants that do very well in landscapes include several varieties of cacti and a large selection of plants from the genus of Aeonium, Agave, Aloe, Crassula, Echeveria, Euphorbia, Sedum, and Sempervivum.

The following gallery provides 15 good examples of landscape designs that use succulent plants.

[Do not forget to see 15 tips to help you create a beautiful succulent garden by Debra Lee Baldwin]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

15 Jun

5 Unusual Plants for a Miniature Succulent Garden

I am a big fan of miniature gardens. They allow you a lot of freedom in a very limited space to grow your gardens the way you want – Japanese tea garden, a traditional Italian garden, a mini succulent garden or whatever creative or unusual you can imagine.

Best Plants for a Miniature Succulent Garden

Being a lover of cacti and succulents, I have compiled a list of unusual plants that I am going to use in my next miniature succulent garden experiment. These plants are unusual as well as slow growing, so they can live together for quite a long time.

Epithelantha Micromeris (Button Cactus)

Epithelantha is a really slow growing, miniature succulent.  It grows in rocky and well drained soil, requires very little amount of water and usually remains solitary. The plant bears white or pink flowers in summer. Epithelantha requires a sunny spot to grow but does not like direct harsh sunlight. It is also known as Ping Pong cacti for its unusual formation and resemblance with the Ping Pong ball.

epithelantha micromeris

Epithelantha micromeris (Button Cactus), Image from www.drogen.bz

Lithops (Living Stones)

You would hardly find these unusual plants visible in their habitat because of their unusual formation and colors that make them look like pebbles. These miniature plants of South Africa are an excellent choice for a miniature garden. These are relatively easy to grow when provided with proper sunlight, regular fertilizer and grown in well drained soil. Lithops bear white and yellow flowers that look like dandelion flowers.

Lithops, Living Stones

Lithops (Living Stones), Image from lithops.net

Fenestraria (Baby Toes)

Another group of miniature and unusual succulents, Fenestraria belong to extremely dry regions of South Africa where they rely on rainfall for survival and hide themselves in sand for protection against harsh climate. They are excellent choice for a miniature succulent garden and form a soft, green mat of succulent leaves. This unusual plant bears white and yellow flowers in winter. Fenestraria is also known as Baby Toes plants.

Miniature Succulent, Fenestraria Rhopalophylla, Baby Toes,

Fenestraria Rhopalophylla (Baby Toes), Image from wikipedia.org

Crassula

Almost all species in this group are suitable for a miniature succulent garden. These attractive plants are known for their colorful foliage and unusual, tiny flowers. These are drought tolerant plants and do not require plenty of water. These unusual succulents need protection against direct/harsh sunlight and frost. The most unusual of all Crassula is Crassula ‘Buddha’s Temple’ which is a hybrid of Crassula Pyramidalis and Crassula Perfoliata var. minor. This unusual plant actually looks like a mini pagoda.

Crassula (Buddha's Temple)

Crassula (Buddha’s Temple), Image from ilgiardinosullago.blogspot.com

Discocactus horstii

Another unusual, lovely and rare succulent plant that belongs to Brazil, Discocactus horstii is known for its unusual white flowers that bloom in the night and spread intoxicating fragrance. This unusual plant grows solitary and forms a nice and symmetrical globose body. Mature plants produce woolly cephalium covered by bristles. This plant is sensitive to frost, requires partial sunlight and moderate watering.

Discocactus Horstii

Discocactus horstii, Image from www.discocactus.nl