How to Build a Rock Garden with Succulents

Rock gardens have spread their charm in landscapes all over the world. The basic concept is to emulate the terrain of high mountain plants in their natural, rocky surroundings. Here is some information on how to build and design a rock garden using succulents.

Instructions

1. Rock gardens are populated with low-growing plants that snuggle up to various rock formations. When you build your rock garden you will want to make sure you provide excellent drainage. Construct lower layers of broken rock, gravel and sand so the water will drain through easily. Plants that grow in rocky areas and higher altitudes are not comfortable with having their feet sitting in mud or moisture. Even if you are not re-creating a real high-altitude rock garden, yours will still need to look convincing and plants will still need excellent drainage.

2. To set the scene for your rock garden select interesting looking rocks. Rocks collected locally are likely to blend in well with your surroundings. If you buy or bring in rocks from elsewhere, try to stay to a limited color range or rock type so the garden looks cohesive. Rocks look best placed in groups of odd numbers like one or three. You can even stand one tastefully on end. And vary the sizes.

3. There is an assortment of interesting and colorful plants that will look great and thrive in a rock garden. Succulents are plants adapted well to hold water in their leaves and stems. Many of them come in decorative shapes and colors and some even have very showy flowers in bright colors.

4. 

   Try planting the low spreading sedums to create creeping mats of green texture studded with colorful, flowerful stars. Clumps of 'Hen and Chicken' (Sempervivum) plants add flower-like rosettes of green that are often blushed with bright colors, fur or fuzzy fringes. Slip some vertical growers to cozy up to the rocks. Try some 'Blue Sticks' (Scenecio) or 'Pencil' Euphorbias to add excitement.

5. 

   The unusual and fascinating textures, shapes and colors available in succulents make a perfect foil to the mineral of the stone in a rock garden. And the variety of unusual shapes and sizes offered by these water-storing plants make for a variable tapestry of living design. Add the star yellow and white flowers or panicles of bright orange, red or pink when some of these succulents bloom, and you can build a spectacular rock garden with succulents. As a bonus, most succulents are easy to care for, requiring sun or shade and relatively low water.

Resources

• Landscape design and gardening information