Do-it-yourself florarium: step-by-step instructions for creating a mini-garden of succulents. Cactus compositions Cacti in pots compositions

Options for decorating the interior - a lot. One of the rather unusual and gaining popularity is the composition of several plants. Cacti and other succulents remain a favorite in this kind of “creativity”, thanks to some of their qualities.

First, easy care. They do not require constant replanting, watering and attention, therefore, having created an interesting composition, all that remains for the author to do is enjoy the beauty and receive rave reviews.
Second, slow growth which allows you to save the result of laborious work for a long time.

Succulents are an extensive association of plants, which includes various species and families. All of them have one thing in common - to accumulate moisture in their leaves or trunks in the form of juice. For compositions most often used:

cacti, which have many subspecies, but not all of them are suitable for creating a mini-garden;
aloe;
lithops- most often they combine several types of these flowers in one pot, avoiding the use of other cacti and succulents, since their care is somewhat different.

If we talk about the most popular in this type of gardening more specifically, we can distinguish:

Echeveria;
stonecrop;
aeoniums;
young.

This choice is justified by their unusual beauty and ease of care.

How to compose a composition with your own hands?

Choosing the right pot

When choosing dishes to create such an interior decoration, you should adhere to some features. The requirement for a pot, as a place for growing these flowers, is the obligatory presence of holes at its bottom. This will drain excess moisture after watering. All other selection options depend on the grower's imagination. The material for the pallet can be anything - plastic, stone and others. When choosing its color, preference is given to neutral and natural shades, so as not to distract attention from the composition itself.

The peculiarity of succulents is that their root system is small. This allows you to use low pots and pallets for planting, which look very organic in decor. The height of the pallet should be approximately 1/3 of the height of the entire composition of the garden.

Preparing the substrate for the cactus

In their natural environment, succulents grow on sand, sometimes with an admixture of rubble, and even in rock crevices.

Therefore, the main requirement for soil at home is loose, well-permeable to air and water, and a drainage layer at the bottom is required.

The main components are leafy, soddy or greenhouse soils, to which sand, crushed stone and charcoal are necessarily added. It should be borne in mind that representatives of different families may require any additional supplements.

Preparing the foreground of the composition

The foreground should not block the background, so undersized cacti and succulents are located here. At the border of the pot, you can plant species that will effectively hang over its edge.

Background preparation

Most often, a technique is used that helps to create a sense of perspective in a small limited space. To do this, objects that are larger than the rest or grow faster are placed in the background. To do this, you can use a tree crassula or slipway. Also, some decorative elements are often placed there, for example, a figured snag or branch, turrets or figurines are placed, an artificial hill or a mini-rock is created.

planting

Planting succulents with your own hands is not difficult. Drainage is poured into the selected pot at the bottom, which is covered with a small amount of charcoal. Then the prepared soil is covered.

The top layer is sprayed with water. A plant is planted in the chosen place, after dividing its roots. Do the same with all other elements of the composition. The surface is leveled and sprinkled with pebbles, powder or shells.

Basic principles of composition creation

In order for the composition to form a complete picture, it is necessary to follow certain rules.

Decorative powder

The powder will help not only to complement the decorative "landscape" with original details, but also performs a very practical function.

Due to the fact that most often trays and pots for them are used in small sizes and placed in sunlight, the roots can overheat. An additional coating in this case will protect the plants from stretching and pallor.

Compatible cacti and succulents

First of all, we are talking about representatives who are very similar in terms of caring for them. This will greatly facilitate the task of preserving the created mini-garden. The most hardy are echinopsis, mammillaria. They can coexist with almost all species and survive many cataclysms.

The right pot

For a mini-garden with succulents, you can use your wild imagination to the fullest. After all, sometimes unimaginable objects are used as a pallet. Small plants look great in the most bizarre aquariums, in very small bowls and plates, and even in shells.

At the moment, these plants are adopted by gardeners and landscape designers for vertical gardening.

accents

In order for the composition not to look overloaded, the emphasis is placed on only one object or the whole view. All the rest should not be too conspicuous, but only complement and shade.

Composition composed mainly of Echemeria Succulents in a hanging pot Use of cacti together with a money tree Composition composed mainly of cacti Predominantly green succulents in a beautiful pot Lithops in a pot Cactus composition with stones Various succulents in a pot Unusual composition of various succulents

How to care for plants?

Since these flowers naturally grow in a dry and hot climate on stony and poor soils, they need optimal care that resembles natural conditions. One of their main needs is plenty of sunlight. But depending on the family, plants have a different attitude to direct sunlight. Some of them, such as cactus or agave, prefer to be in the scorching sun. For others, direct rays can cause burns.

Care for them in winter and summer is significantly different.

In winter, they hibernate a little and do not require frequent watering. They need sunlight, and since in our country it is much less in winter, you need to leave the pot to the window itself. It is better to maintain the temperature within 10-16 degrees and water no more than 1 time in 10 days, or even less.

In the spring, watering is more frequent, the flowers feel better in the fresh air or at least on the balcony. If the composition is created and looks perfect on a coffee table, then you can leave it there for a period of no more than a month. Then you should return the plants to the windowsill under bright sunlight.

To feed succulents, fertilizers are used that contain phosphorus, potassium or complexes: superphosphates, ammophos, etc.

Conclusion

If you want to create an unusual and beautiful element of decor with the help of living plants, you should first of all pay attention to plants related to succulents and cacti. Thanks to the variety of options for their use in horizontal and vertical gardening, they will help create an unforgettable "living" corner.

Every year, succulent compositions are gaining more and more popularity in design. These unpretentious exotic plants will suit anyone who wants to decorate the interior in a lively and original way. Due to their unpretentious care, beautiful shapes and wide range of colors, succulents have become an indispensable element of decor for designers.

The role of succulents in design decisions

A rare design does without living elements - plants. Unfortunately, with flowers there are difficulties due to care. Often, due to lack of light, insufficient watering, or improper temperature conditions, indoor plants die, and without them, the decor becomes inferior.

Interior decoration with succulents, due to their unpretentiousness in care, has opened up new horizons for designers. These plants are multifaceted, differing not only in the size and shape of the leaves, but also in color and texture. In addition, there are flowering species that make the decor fresh.

There are many ways to use succulents in the interior. The most common of them:

Phyto pictures from succulents. Plants are planted in the ground, which are placed in a deep frame, and hung on the wall. Such a composition is poured from a spray bottle without difficulty.
An alternative to a phyto-picture is a panel of artificial (dried) succulents. It is made into narrow frames and does not need care, and due to the properties of this type of plant, it will please the eyes of the owners for a long time.
Compositions of succulents in pots. Interior design does not have to be flashy. Plants are pleasing to the eye in simple pots, the main thing is to correctly compose the composition and choose the right place in the house.

In order for succulents in the interior to look beautiful and delight the owners, you need to follow the rules for decorating and caring for plants.

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Ideas for interior design

The variety of succulents often dazzles the eyes, and good ideas do not form into one ideal one. To understand which plants will take their place in the future dream interior, it is not shameful to peep the designs of designers on the Internet, take into account all the pros and cons of each of them.

One of the easiest ways to make your small home garden unique is with pot mixes. Combining small vessels, you can create whole compositions, and it is more convenient to take care of plants planted one by one.

It is easy to make a picture of succulents with your own hands. The avant-gardeness of such a piece of decor scares some novice designers, but in practice the process does not take more than a few hours, and the result will please the eye for many years.

mini potted garden

One of the easiest ways to use succulents in your design is to plant them in one large pot. So that such a composition does not look too ordinary, you have to get out.

Every year mini-gardens made of succulents become more popular. How do they differ from ordinary plants planted in the soil? In addition to many varieties of succulents, special decorative elements from specialized stores are used for decoration. As a result, the planted flowers resemble a small corner of nature on a shelf. Due to the specificity of the succulent family, they are often used to create indoor "rock gardens".

florarium

Florarium is a transparent vessel that is open to the outside world only on one side. Such flower pots are more like aquariums, but due to the presence of walls, the succulent garden looks voluminous.

It is better to plant moisture-loving succulents in florariums, because holes are not made in such vessels at the bottom, and water evaporates from the soil much more slowly. But plants in glass receive some protection from sunlight, so such a composition can be placed in more lit places.

Horizontal compositions

Succulents and cacti look no less charming in small wooden boxes or other flat containers. The size of such an impromptu pot allows you to create large compositions, build images from plants or transform them into small play areas for children.

Wall panels and paintings

Paintings and panels of succulents are considered the most difficult to manufacture, but in fact, working with them is sometimes even easier than with florariums. The vertical arrangement does not prevent flowers from growing and developing over the years.

Live paintings diversify and highlight the design, so before moving on to the panel with artificial plants, it is better to work on real ones. This is not so difficult with the right selection of soil and frame depth.

A picture of succulents implies that plants remain alive throughout the entire period of use. Due to the fact that this species can exist in rough, rocky soil, the soil is easily held upright.

Despite the weak root system, succulents are well kept in the frame, and due to the absence of the need for abundant watering, the soil can simply be irrigated with a spray bottle.

If the option with live plants turned out to be inappropriate, you can make a composition of artificial ones. This process is much simpler, and in the interior such a thing looks no less impressive. Due to the fact that artificial or dried plants are used in the manufacture, the design uses not only a rectangular panel, but also any other shape - after all, the ground is glued and varnished, so it does not need to stay in the frame on its own.

How to create a composition with your own hands

In order for a corner of succulents to appear in the apartment, it is not necessary to call a designer or florist. You can settle these unpretentious plants in a pot with your own hands. You can decorate and transform a composition of cacti and succulents as you please, even without special tools at hand.

Basic layout principles

There are no restrictions in the design of the future living corner, except for those dictated by the general style of the apartment and the taste of the creator, but you should be careful with the selection of plants. There are a number of useful tips to remember before starting the creative process:

If you want to create a unique composition, it is best to use a rectangular, white-painted vessel. In such a container, all attention will be paid to the succulents and decorations inside the pot, and not to him.
When working with vertical compositions, the main thing is to cover the root neck with soil. From above, you can lay and even glue stones, decor and pieces of brick - this will not harm the plant.
If it was decided to plant succulents in a glass vase, you must definitely take care of how moisture will evaporate. If the bud is too wet, the root system will quickly rot and the plants will die.
Live pictures of succulents are best kept for the first time (at least 2-3 months) in a horizontal position so that the plants get stronger and get used to the new environment. Only after that, the resulting decor element can be turned over and hung.

Ideas for compositions are not shameful to look on the Internet. In any case, it is impossible to repeat such work, so each work with succulents is a work of art.

What plants are best to use

To create flower arrangements, you can choose any plants, but it is best to use cacti and succulents. They are in perfect harmony with each other, picky in care and add a certain amount of exoticism and piquancy to the interior.

In no case should you add various mosses to succulents. They retain moisture on the surface, and it harms the neck of the plant's root system.

Decorative ferns and crotons look good in the composition. Compared to small succulents, they look gigantic, but they add volume to the composition.

Alocasia is well suited to create a tropical look. This plant looks like a large water lily on a long stem and, due to its unusual appearance, refreshes any composition.

What can be planted with

Despite the fact that succulents do not require reverent care, only compatible subspecies of this family can be planted together. It is imperative to pay attention to the following factors:

Plants should grow in similar climatic conditions. You can not plant moisture-loving succulents with cacti in the same pot, which do not tolerate abundant watering.
Do not plant large plants with miniature ones. The root system of large succulents will simply suffocate the roots of small ones, and they will quickly die.
You can not plant closely flowering and non-flowering plants. The former require much more nutrients during flowering, and because of this, succulents without flowers may simply not have enough of them.

Choice of container and substrate

Anything can serve as a pot for a future composition - from a fancy-shaped wooden box to a planter specially prepared for succulents. The main thing is to remember that there must be holes in the bottom of the vessel for excess moisture.

The most popular containers for succulents at the moment are:

Florariums or small aquariums, glass vases.
Deep frames for wall compositions.
Planters.
Loft-style pots made from old boxes, wooden crates, and more.

How to plant plants

You need to plant succulents for design in the same way as in ordinary pots on the windowsill, but taking into account the peculiarities of the place and the vessel.

If you decide to plant flower arrangements in a cup or other unusual vessel without holes in the bottom, you need to make them yourself, or choose a more moisture-loving subspecies of succulents for planting.

When working with vertical compositions, the main thing is to let the plant take root, strengthen its roots in the ground. From above, the soil must be pressed down and strengthened. Stones work best for this. They can be glued to the sides of the vessel and to each other for strength.

If the future composition will be located in the dark places of the apartment, you need to pick up special plants for it. Leaving succulents without light can quickly kill them. At the same time, some subspecies of this plant can comfortably live in dark corners.

Use of decorative elements

There are many ways to make your composition unique, and using additional decor elements is one of them. You can make them yourself, buy them in specialized stores or pick up suitable household items.

Sand decoration is the most economical and effective way to create a composition of succulents. Imitation of desert rams, a rock garden and simply drawing drawings are just a few of the possible options. Sand opens up a huge scope for creativity.

Florist shops, aquarists and creative outlets sell many miniature items that can be used to create compositions. Small houses, trees, animals and even little men will help to make a real work of art out of a simple pot of flowers.

Subtleties of care

Caring for decorative succulents is no more difficult than caring for plants in a pot. It is only necessary to take into account those special conditions that you have created, for example:

In order to create your own composition of succulents, you do not need a step-by-step recipe. The creative process does not tolerate restrictions, and working with this type of plant contributes to the lack of frames. The only thing to reckon with is the biological limitations of the succulents themselves, which are extremely undemanding. The rest of the designer is limited only by his imagination.

When an amateur florist already has sufficient experience in growing succulents and cacti, knows the features of caring for these plants, then you can try your hand at creativity. We are talking about compiling compact mini-gardens from a large and diverse world of desert flora. This is a very exciting process. And even if not everything will work out right away - you will get great pleasure. Everything is not so difficult if you listen to the advice of experienced flower growers.

Some potted succulents sometimes look dull and lonely. And in combination with other plants suitable for care and maintenance, they will show themselves in all their glory.

Capacity selection

First you need to roughly imagine: what kind of picture would you like to create - similar to a landscape or a composition that resembles an extravagant bouquet. The type of container in which the plants will be planted depends on this. Sometimes compositions are created spontaneously, when a grower accumulates a lot of children, pruning after the formation of a crown or bush, they are made into a single picture.

Aquarium: in round aquariums it is quite difficult to make a large composition. But everything is possible if there is a desire. First you need to disinfect the container. This can be done either with alcohol (just wipe) or with a solution of chlorhexidine. At the bottom you need to pour crushed charcoal, preferably birch.

Charcoal absorbs organic residues and prevents molds from developing. Then we add drainage (usually expanded clay) and the appropriate soil substrate in an even layer. Since the aquarium is transparent, for beauty, you can alternate the soil with layers of colored sand. Then we plant succulents and cacti, depending on the plan.

Clay vase - cache-pot: it is better to use decorative vases with uneven, asymmetrical edges. There should be holes on the bottom for water to drain. The pallet should match the color and size of the pot. Pay attention to the color - it should be combined with plants. Clay is a hygroscopic material, so it is best suited for succulents. Under the container for a mini-garden, pots with a broken edge, giant shells can also come up.

glass vase: on sale there are large glasses for chips, as well as flowerpots with legs. They are treated in the same way as aquariums. But it is very beautiful if you plant plants that will hang like vines from the edge of the flowerpot. In all cases, wherever an exotic garden is arranged, decorative details must be added: colored glass pebbles, small fortresses (these are placed in an aquarium for fish), artificial moss and others.

Wooden box or pot made from a piece of solid wood: this method is for true connoisseurs of flower eco-culture. The material is rather whimsical in care, it requires accurate watering techniques (such a pot cannot be wetted much). If you decide to make a wooden container yourself, then be sure to coat it with a water-repellent varnish or impregnation for wood before planting. Such a pot will look amazing in any interior, delighting you and your guests!

Florariums: Recently, it has become very popular to plant succulents and cacti in florariums. Now you can easily purchase a variety of geometric containers in online stores, and even florariums with ready-made compositions. Succulents grow well in florariums, this is due to the protection of the plant from drafts and temperature changes.

Video interview about mini-kindergartens and care for them

There is also a more economical option - to find a suitable glass vessel at home and fill it to your liking and desire.

What plants can be used

Composition center should be either in the center or on the edge. For the center, tree-like types of succulents are used. Can be used:

Aeonium tree (Aeonium arboretum);
Dorstenia (Dorstenia);
Sedum dendrodium tree (Sedum dendrodium);
Pedilanthus tithymaloides (variety - low) (Pedilanthus tithymaloides v. Nanus);
Adenia spinosa (prickly) (Adenia spinosa).

Then you need to arrange two or three large succulents or cacti. Of the succulents, some types of aeoniums (tiered, layered) look very beautiful, Dinteranthus microspermus (Dinteranthus microspermus) - a plant that looks like gray stones, blooms with a yellow flower. You can also plant the most hardy cacti:

Mammillaria (Mammillaria);
Echinopsis (Echinopsis);
Rebutia aureiflora rubriflora (Rebutia aureiflora rubriflora);
Chamecereus silvestri (Chamaecereus silvestry).

desirable, and even it is necessary to leave a place in the foreground for small plants, especially if, as they grow, they hang in small vines along the edge of the container. The more varieties there are, the more interesting the composition will become. Here you can place some of the plants such as:

Sedum Weinberg (Sedum weinbergii);
Sedum Siebold (Sedum sieboldii);
Other types of stonecrop (Sedum).

Proper planting of composition plants - step by step instructions

For proper planting, you need to purchase special tools: bamboo tweezers, small spatulas, an artist's trowel is perfect, even a teaspoon is useful for filling small containers with soil.

We prepare the ground or components of the substrate. We took part of the already prepared land for cacti and succulents, drainage, sand and charcoal. All components were purchased from the store. If you take materials from the street, be sure to heat the sand and stones in the oven, or roast them in a frying pan.

Choose a container for planting and plants.

In the prepared vessel (aquarium, glass vase, ceramic flat pot or deep dish), we fill up at least ¼ of the drainage height. In transparent containers, you can separate it with a layer of colored sand.

Next, carefully pour the mixed soil mixture. Leaving 1 cm from the top of the pot, we make indentations in the soil, marking the places for planting.

Carefully straighten the roots of plants (for cacti, they must be carefully examined and cut out old and rotten or dried roots). Please note that the root neck of the plant is not covered. This is important, if you deepen the neck, then accumulation of moisture and decay may occur.

At the end, you can decorate the bare places with colored pebbles, artificial moss, shells and put decorative elements. You can buy small ceramic gnomes, and if the composition is being prepared for a New Year's gift, then put the figures of Santa Claus and the Snow Maiden.

Care

Watering

The most difficult and demanding action in caring for a mini-garden. Therefore, it is so important to select plants with the same water requirement. All succulents love heat and good light, but watering should be rather scarce, just to wet the soil. If a plant is planted that loves abundant, but rare watering (there are such tropical succulents), then it is watered pointwise, under the ground near the root. In summer, the composition is watered as the soil dries, which is easiest to check with your hands. In winter, once every 2-3 weeks, more often it is not worth it. All plants are in the dormant stage.

When a succulent experiences a lack of moisture, it begins to grow roots, releases aerial roots. If watered too often or too much, plants can rot and die. Tell your family not to water the plants, even if they think it's time to water. Make it a rule that only you do it. Otherwise, compassionate relatives will feel sorry for the poor flowers so much that you will have to start all over again.

Do not water mini-gardens with cold water, it is better if you use water at room temperature. This is especially true for small seedlings and watering in the winter. It is convenient to use a syringe for watering.

Lighting

Choose light-loving plants - these, in fact, include all succulents and cacti. Therefore, they need to be placed in a well-lit place - a loggia, a balcony. But this is in the summer, when the night temperature is quite high. You also need to take into account the attitude to direct rays of sunlight, cacti love it, but some succulents can get burned. To prevent this from happening, use mesh shading.

They also need sunlight in winter, so you need to put the pot to the window itself so that there is as much light as possible. But backlighting is necessary if there is a catastrophic lack of light: if the windows on the ground floor and because of the trees the sun's rays cannot penetrate your windowsill. Due to lack of light, plants stretch, become lethargic, lose all their attractiveness and even change color. Without light, no succulent will grow well!

In summer, with poor watering, the colors of succulents become brighter, they become especially beautiful if they are left on a balcony or loggia on dry sunny autumn days. Coolness has a stimulating effect on succulents, they become brighter, the leaves either shine more strongly, or vice versa, the edge on the plants increases.

Temperature

Mini-compositions feel great in the temperature regime of our city apartments, in summer the temperature is 20-25 degrees, with regular airing, such compositions are simply resort conditions. You can put them on the loggia, on the balcony, on the terrace of a country house.

In winter, in our apartments, succulents and cacti suffer from a lack of lighting, but the temperature should be around 10-15 degrees. This can be done by isolating the window sill from the heat that comes from the central heating batteries. At low temperatures, succulents freeze and during this period you can not water them at all, they do not need extra moisture. Then you will avoid stretching the flower.

Humidity

All succulents and cacti come from hot and dry places, so they do not need moist air. They love dry air, ventilation. You can’t just put compositions in a draft. Although the plants are not sissies, and they can endure short-term inconvenience, but constant exposure to a draft threatens with deformation of the stems, leaf fall. High humidity has a depressing effect not only on succulents, but also on cacti. Especially during the flowering period.

The soil

There are many options for the composition of the soil mixture. Ready mix, bought at a flower shop. For a beginner amateur florist, one well-proven scheme for compiling a substrate is enough:

The soil for the compositions is based on peat. It is better to buy a ready-made peat mixture (preferably German-made), taking a certain amount of peat - you need to check it, remove sticks, and other debris;
Then add perlite, about one third of the peat mixture. It gives the substrate looseness and permeability;
Be sure to add fine fraction expanded clay (3-5 mm in diameter) to the mixture. It is put in the same amount as you put perlite. Roots need expanded clay, as they must cling to a support;
Add charcoal and sand. Coal protects the roots from rotting, and sand helps to pass moisture through the soil. Some flower growers plant succulents in sand alone, adding expanded clay and coal to the bottom of the vessel, without using earth and peat.

Transfer

Transplanting plants in a mini-garden rarely happens, but if suddenly you decide to replace one plant with another, more extravagant one, you need to carefully free the roots from the soil and the roots of other succulents with a flat wooden stick. Often the roots are intertwined quite strongly, you can try to slowly stretch the plant.

If you decide to transplant the entire composition into a larger pot, or a more beautiful vase, then this should be done using the transshipment method. Try to free all the roots of plants from the remnants of the old soil and, planting in a new container, distribute them evenly over the entire area. At this point, you can add new plants if you see fit.

Fertilizer

You can fertilize succulents from March to November, once a month with special fertilizers with a low nitrogen content. Breeding according to the instructions. The photo shows how much dry fertilizer to take per 0.5 liter of water.

Useful video

Photo ideas for composing succulent gardens

If you still have questions, you can ask them in the comments to the article! Thank you for reading us, success in your creative flower business!

It is believed that lovers of indoor flowers, whose windows face the sunny side, are lucky. Their pets will not suffer from a lack of light, so choosing a plant to your taste is much easier.

But this medal also has a flip side.

In summer, sunny windows let in too much heat, the earth in pots dries up quickly, and if you do not water on time, then the plants will not last long and lose.

Such a danger often lies in wait for summer residents who leave the city for the weekend, leaving plants unattended for 2-3 days. Watering for the future does not always save, especially since it is not useful for all crops.

What is the way out?

Assortment of plants for a mini-garden at home

One of the most suitable for such conditions, besides hardy and beautiful, are various succulent species: crassula, stonecrop, echeveria, aeonium, spurge, sansevieria, aloe and many others, including epiphytic and terrestrial cacti.

They can be grown in pots, as we usually do with indoor plants, but, in my opinion, they look much more interesting in combination with each other, planted in a common container.

These plants are simply created for compositions (mini-gardens), their appearance, shape and color of leaves, type of growth are so diverse. There are upright, creeping, ground cover rosettes between them. And more importantly, many are miniature and slowly growing species, so the created compositions retain their proportions for a long time.

Care for succulents at home

There are several important rules that are not at all difficult to follow when planting and caring for succulents:

for planting plants, preference should be given to wide low pots, it is possible without drainage holes;
minimal watering is required (in winter - very rare, in summer, depending on the weather, 1-3 times a week);
sunlight is welcome;
the substrate should not consist of peat alone, it is necessary to add soddy soil to it (it is possible with a significant proportion of clay) and sand.

Still attractive in succulents is their ability to easily take root by cuttings. This quality is very useful when planting tightly in a composition: it is not necessary to have mature plants with roots that are difficult to fit in a small container - small parts of shoots or small rosettes are enough. Even the cut tops of cacti, after preliminary preparation, take root well in the substrate, not to mention the children separated from the bush.

But even here there are little tricks that will save the planted cuttings from trouble.

Firstly, cut off, and more often plucked off parts of the shoots before planting, should be kept in the air for 2-3 hours for small specimens and 1-3 days for large plants with a large cut area (euphorbia, cacti).

The milky juice released on the cut of milkweeds is immediately washed off with water and then the cuttings are left to dry. During this time, the sections are tightened with a crust, which will prevent the cutting from rotting after planting in the ground.

The second important point is watering the planted cuttings. It's better to put it off

2-3 days, and sometimes more, if the weather is wet and rainy and the sun hardly shows up. It is best to pre-moisten the substrate prepared for planting slightly (but so that it does not stick together into a lump when squeezed in your hand). Here you need to follow the principle: it is better to dry than to pour.

Containers for succulent compositions

The best containers for succulent compositions are ceramic wide bowls of various shapes.

On sale you can find low pots specially designed for such plants, but other ceramic dishes up to food salad bowls are quite suitable. Very beautiful compositions are obtained in bonsai - special containers for growing bonsai-style dwarf trees.

The main principle of selecting plants for composition is the diversity of their appearance. Otherwise, everyone can rely on their own taste.

The final touch, which will give the composition a finished look, will be gravel bedding on the surface of the substrate.

With proper care and maintenance, a succulent garden can exist for more than one year. If you need to replace any plant in it, this can be done with minimal labor. The old plant is simply cut out of the soil, a fresh substrate is poured into the hole and a new plant is planted in the form of a cutting.

Do-it-yourself mini-garden at home: photo

With such small scoops it is convenient to pour the substrate between the planted plants. A brush is useful when you need to sweep away particles of earth or gravel that have fallen on plants during planting.
In a small bowl (about 10 cm in diameter), you should not plant more than 3 plants.
Landing bowls can be very diverse both in size and shape, and in material, but it is better to focus on clay products. Compositions can be supplemented with large stones ...
...or shells.
This composition with echeveria, crassula and gasteria is dominated by a cactus with bright, as if burning thorns.
In summer, the compositions feel great on a sunny glazed balcony. Here they can stay until the onset of stable cool weather. You just need to reduce watering. But if autumn is cold, rainy, and the sky is constantly covered with clouds, it is better to bring succulent compositions into the room.

All my recent publications were mostly devoted to needlework - the most popular category among my readers. But comfort in the house is impossible to imagine without flowers. My favorite topic - and other garden flowers, landscape design, we will postpone for a while, and today we will pay attention to small home thorns - cacti and try to do

Cacti are interesting for their unusual shape, endurance, wonderful flowers. Therefore, many women love these indoor plants.

From cacti you can create original compositions decorating the interior.

In room conditions, cacti grow very slowly, they do not need a lot of space. small collection of cacti can be placed in one small bowl.

The debate about whether cacti dampen electromagnetic radiation does not stop. But two or three cacti next to the computer meanwhile will not hurt, but it is not recommended to put more of them so as not to create an imbalance in the harmonious atmosphere of the workplace.

In general, cacti love small dishes. It is better if the diameter of the pot per centimeter is two more than the diameter of the cactus.

Of course, you can plant several cacti in one pot - cacti are not afraid of crowding - but so that they do not hurt each other with needles.

For cactus compositions any dishes will do: cups, bowls, wide and low pots, vases, even wine glasses and glasses, you can use baskets and aquariums.

Before transplanting cacti, the children need to be well dried, torn off from their mother and dried for 7-10 days. Nothing will happen to them. Plant in slightly moistened cactus soil from a spray bottle.

When planting, you need to ensure that the roots are directed down or to the sides, but not up.

No need to water right away because the roots rot easily. In two weeks, the delicate roots of cacti will take root and only then they can be sprayed and watered as needed.

To create original cactus compositions we decorate the ground around the cacti with the help of large and small pebbles, decorative sand, shells, cones, various figures.

And in anticipation New Year's cacti will help you create a festive mood, if you add Christmas decorations, tinsel to the composition of cacti, you can dress up a cactus in a Santa Claus costume or create a small Christmas tree out of it.

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