Davanna Hart gives pointers on succulent bowls

• Published: Mar 6, 2008

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Davanna Hart has raised cacti and succulents since childhood but got serious about it in the 1970s when she began to keep records of what she grew. She is a charter member of the Baton Rouge Cactus and Succulent Society and has been a Louisiana Master Gardener since 1995.

Q: What is a succulent bowl? 
A: It’s a mixed planting of succulents, plants that can conserve water in their stems, leaves and/or roots, in times of drought.

Q: How large and deep a bowl is best?
A: Twelve inches to 18 inches in diameter and about 4 to 6 inches deep. It can be made of ceramic, plastic, clay or even big flower pot saucers. Make sure it has a hole for drainage.

Q: What kind of growing medium is best?
A: Use a fast-draining soil, one that won’t retain moisture. Don’t put rocks in the bottom of the bowl. Drainage is better if the same soil is used from top to bottom.

Q: What kind of succulent plants do you select that do well in south Louisiana?
A: I use a lot of aloes; there are so many cousins, aunts and uncles to the aloe vera that we’re most familiar with. You don’t want plants that get too big too fast. I also use haworthias and euphorbias; each has many varieties that are available locally. Sedums make nice ground covers, and agaves also work well.

Q. How do you actually plant the bowl?
A: After filling the bowl with fast-draining soil, I plant five or six main plants that I call the backbone of the bowl. For example, I might start with a 12-inch crown of thorns (euphorbia milii) just off center and a couple of aloe and agave rosettes pleasingly arranged around the bowl. That gives five or six main plants in the bowl but leaves a lot of dirt exposed. Add a nice rock, about the size of a baseball, which gives the bowl a dessert landscape look.

Next, I might add a portulaca or an ice plant (delosperma cooperi), a flowering succulent that gives the bowl color over the entire growing season. (The growing season is anytime you can get something to grow.)

After establishing the core plants, the rest is a process of tweaking with accent plants. To cover the dirt, I use pea gravel. If you see cute little plants, tuck them in. Sedums are good for that – low-growing plants that could spill over the edge and soften the bowl, the rock and the tall centerpiece. For this year’s Master Gardener sale we will use a tall ponytail palm as the centerpiece for several succulent bowls.

Q: When should you plant succulents in Louisiana?
A: Anytime you feel like it. These plants have been ripped out of their native habitat and brought here, some from the Southern Hemisphere, which means their seasons are the reverse of ours. Just don’t leave your succulents outside when the temperature goes below 40 degrees.

If you’ve had them inside for the winter, ease them into full sun, because they get sunburned if they are not conditioned.

Q: How do you care for them, frequency of water and fertilizer, availability of sun?
A: The secret to watering succulent plants is to let them dry entirely and then water profusely until water comes out of the drain holes. It’s best to flush from the soil the salts that build up from fertilizer and water minerals. Most succulents like full sun. Use an all-purpose liquid fertilizer every other time for summer watering.

Q: How large do they get?  How quickly do they grow?  How long do they thrive?
A: Each one is different.  When the bowl looks overcrowded, take it apart and give the offsets or babies to friends. Any dish garden will get overcrowded sooner or later. I have two bowls that are two years old, and both are ready to be rebuilt.

Q: What are your personal secrets for success with succulents?
A: Find a $5 water tester, and don’t water if the needle moves. If in doubt, don’t water.