Ready to create your own mini garden this summer? Succulents are simple, easy-to-care-for plants that require little maintenance and pruning. Most succulents grow best outdoors, but not all environments are suitable for their proper growth and maintenance. To create your indoor succulent garden, start with a few Terracotta pots, plenty of sunshine, and an abundance of small plants. These five succulents “make a space” and bring the outdoors in!
1. Hens & Chicks (Sempervivum)
Also known as the “live forever” plant, the sempervivum is one of the many species in the house leek family. The leaves form rosette-like shapes with frilly edges, and the plant grows in different color varieties, ranging from deep purple to light rose. Sempervivum like colder temperatures, especially at night, and full to half sunlight during the day. Best of all, this succulent requires little watering!
2. Burro’s Tail (Sedum Morganianum)
Native to the warm climates of Mexico and Honduras, burro’s tail is a great houseplant that grows long stems with thick, chalky-looking leaves. The plant grows in green, gray-green, and blue-green varieties. This succulent trails over pots and covers ground areas because of its long stems, which makes it best for hanging garden baskets!
3. Jade Plant (Crassula Ovata)
Fast-growing and inexpensive, the jade plant is best for low-maintenance gardening because it requires lots of sunshine and little watering. Crassula ovata has rounded, thick leaves, called ovoid, with water-filled stems. This succulent comes in many different colors, shapes, and varieties, so it is best for new gardeners looking for a simple, but appealing, succulent!
4. Aloe Vera
Often used to treat sunburns and minor wounds, aloe vera is a medicinal plant that grows tall, sharp leaves. This succulent requires only a few hours of sunlight per day and often, but not daily, watering. Aloe vera leaves have pointed thorns along their edges, so place this succulent in a pot by itself and away from busy rooms -- best where it cannot fall and hurt someone!
5. String of Bananas (Senecio radicans)
Senecio radicans earns its common name because of its banana-shaped, glossy leaves. Best for hanging, individual pots, string of bananas grows trailing stems that reach incredible lengths in a short span of time! This succulent loves the heat and requires watering every 2-3 weeks. The most maintenance includes subtle pruning to control the succulent’s abundant growth!
Practice simple gardening this summer with a succulent garden that brings life to any space. No matter what climate you live in, succulents thrive indoors as houseplants (and make for great Instagram photo-ops!)
