Today I want to show you how simple it is to create a succulent planter. It’s no secret that I love succulents. I’ve had a love affair with them for almost thirty years.  I suppose it comes from growing up in Southern California. The colors, their ease of growing and the beauty they impart in my life are some of the reasons. I love to create these for gifts. This year is no different. These little plants spark joy and together they make my heart leap when I see them. Likewise, I imagine they do the same for others too.

If you are like me, you have spent more time than you would like to admit online. Sometimes it is fun to go down the rabbit hole. In this case, I discovered an amazing pottery artist out of California. The texturizing and glazes as well as the shapes of her pottery found their way into my heart. When it comes to potting succulents, sometimes I pick the planters first before the succulents and this time that was the case.

The two planters that I chose were mixes of blues, purples and fuchsia tones. So that made the decision for me that I wanted to do succulents with those tones as well. I like to purchase my succulent from Altman Plants in California. They ship directly to your home and the quality of their plants it top notch. (These are all my own opinions, I have not been paid to endorse them nor the pottery artist.) You can order a variety of sizes too.  In this case, I ordered the 2.5 inch pots and one larger one.

Pick your plants and pot and you are ready to start. I love to pack in the succulents so each planter accommodated approximately six, 2.5 inch plants each even though the smallest planter opening was roughly 4 x 3 inches. I learned a great deal and upped my succulent planting skills from Cindy Davison a few years back.

Planter Supply List

• planter
• succulents
• succulent/cactus potting soil or well-draining soil
• chopstick
• paintbrush

First to create succulent planter you will want to chose a variety of succulents with complimentary coloring and a variety of heights. Once you have selected both the planter and the plants you are ready to get started.

Pro-Tip: The planter should have drainage holes. I keep and use broken shards of pottery to cover all the holes in my planters. It is a great way to up-cycle.

Steps to Create a Succulent Planter

First, cover the drainage holes with shards of pottery like so.

Next fill your planter with potting soil leaving 2-3 inches room at the top.

Now imagine how you would like to arrange the succulents in the planters. For fun you can move them around while still in their pots to get an idea how they would look. In these planters, I have chose a taller one to be in the middle. For these planters, I have chosen to work from side to side.

Pro-Tip: Shorter succulents and trailing succulents are best suited for the outer edges of your planter.

Please know that succulents should be handled gently but can be forgiving when it comes to their roots. You can gently remove some of their soil, gingerly compress the root ball to change its shape and nudge them into the selected space with the chopstick. In addition, as you create a succulent planter I find that the chopstick is perfect for squeezing into small spaces where your fingers might be too large.

Now time for the final touches, Dust of the soil on the leaves of the succulents with your paint brush. I do not recommend using water. It makes things messy!

If you happen to have any tiny leaves the have broken off during the potting or cleaning, simply take them and put them aside on a paper towel in the windowsill. After that, in no time they will become entirely wee new plants.

Ta-dah! Here they are all planted up and dusted.

I love how the colors of the succulents play with the colors in the pottery.

After you creating a succulent planter, it is easy to care for. Avoid watering for the first week. After a week, you can gently water when the soil becomes dry. Place your planter in bright light. The planter can live outdoors in warmer climates or in summer time in climates with more variable seasons.

Tell me, which planter do you like the best?

For more succulent projects from me, search for succulents in the search bar at the top of my page.