A couple of weekends ago, we were in Pebble Beach, Carmel and Big Sur taking in the beautiful views of the Pacific Ocean. We were fortunate enough to spend a couple of nights with some dear friends who have particularly spectacular views of the ocean and Monterey Cypress trees – a personal favorite.
Ann has a passion for succulents, which I must admit I had never previously warmed up to. To me, to put it bluntly, they always seemed like plants of last resort in severe drought conditions. However, I couldn’t have been more wrong. Seeing her garden which has been curated over many years with many different varieties – in pots and in-ground, I began to view succulents in a new light. I wandered throughout her garden with her and was introduced to succulents I’d never seen or noticed before. They were really beautiful. She thinks of them as people, each with their own personality – and I can see why.
I especially loved all of her pots, each containing a different variety – and her pots were everywhere. Don’t you agree that they look terrific here?
One of the things I really like about her garden is that it all seems so natural in this setting. None of the fussy, “filling in the holes” or unachievable perfection that I’m always focused on with my English garden. Her succulents dot the property and expand their footprint over time, naturally. To me, they look especially compatible and beautiful along side the native grasses she has planted.
I never realized how much variety there is with succulents. I should have realized after visiting Snug Farm in Maine with Helen, as there was an entire green house dedicated to succulents. Now I want to revisit this nursery and take better notice of their varieties.
Not only were the colors highly variable, but the shapes and sizes of the flowers were so different.
It makes me wonder about how I could possibly integrate succulents into my own garden. I remember seeing some of these plants on last month’s trip to Lednice-Valtice in the Czech countryside, used as border flowers (pictured below). I took notice of them because I hadn’t seen them used in a border before. Maybe there is a place for them in my garden too…
Thanks Ann for opening my eyes to the beauty of succulents! I obviously need to learn more about these beautiful plants. I’m now a fan.
