Succulent Success

Succulents have become immensely popular in recent years: they’re indigenous, produce attractive flowers in winter and they’re totally hassle-free. Succulents have evolved to survive in dry, hostile environments, so they do best in dry, sandy gardens, but they also grow very well in pots.

If you plant them in your garden, make sure you plant them en masse in a dedicated area. They look most impressive when grouped together, and don’t work well when they are dotted around the garden next to petunias, poppies and other dainty plants.

If you plant them in pots, combine 1 part river sand with 1 part potting soil and 1 part compost and then plant in a terracotta pot (not plastic, as this does not allow water to escape).

Did you know? – Succulents have long been used by the San bushmen to cure a variety of ailments. The sap of the aloe plant is effective in soothing bruises and burns and aloe ferox (Cape aloe) is sold in supplement form to ease digestion and blood pressure problems.