If April showers bring May flowers, then May brings a lengthy to-do list for avid gardeners. The springtime ritual of planting and watering is about to commence, and local master gardeners can hardly wait.
For these devoted dirt diggers, the considerable time it takes to plant, water and nurture plants, day in and day out, is a labor of love. Ironically, when the Hancock County Master Gardeners Association convened earlier this month, it was a notably low-maintenance type of plant that held their attention.
About 30 club members gathered at the Hancock County 4-H Fairgrounds for their monthly meeting to discuss succulents, a family of low-maintenance plants known for their ability to thrive with limited amounts of water and overall attention.
Cactus, aloe vera and hens and chicks are among the better-known varieties.
Webster defines succulents as plants with fleshy tissues that conserve moisture. Gardeners define them as low-maintenance plants that can easily lend beauty to almost any landscape, even a stone walkway or rocky cliff.
“Succulents are a great place to start for someone with a brown thumb,” said Jerry Lecount, a bronze level master gardener who spoke at the recent meeting. “Succulents are very forgiving of the forgetful gardener.”
The low-maintenance growers have a number of positive attributes, he said. “They can add a lot of pizzazz to pots, indoors or out.”
Lee Rose Alexander, president of the master gardeners club, brought in a variety of her own potted succulents to share with the group. Pots of various shapes and sizes held plants both big and small, from a tiny cluster of string of pearls to a three-foot-tall ZZ plant, short for zamioculcas zamiifoli.
“They really like morning sun and a little bit of shade in the afternoon,” said Alexander, while holding up each of her plants, one by one, as she addressed the crowd. One pot held a plant called living stones, a South African plant which over time adapted to look like stones to prevent being eaten.
Some succulents are so resilient, they survive on the moisture found in mist or fog, while some in cold climates sink down into the ground to keep themselves sufficiently warm.
Roy Ballard, a master gardener and Purdue Extension educator, shared a slideshow of fun facts about succulents, which are found all over the world except Antarctica. There are about 20,000 different types of succulents, some of which can live months or even years without rain, he said.
“They’re very hardy and can easily self-propagate,” said Ballard. If a leaf comes off, just stick it down in the soil and it will grow, he said.
Succulents are preferred in dry climates with water restrictions, since they thrive with limited water. “They’re tolerant of pets, low humidity, low light and general neglect. They’re actually better off if you neglect them just a bit,” said Ballard.
Even in a room full of master gardeners, the low-maintenance plants have a big appeal.
Alexander loves the diversity of succulents, and has a passion for growing a variety of different kinds year-round. The stories behind each one are fascinating, she said, pointing to a purplish plant in an orchid-colored pot. That particular plant, the Ghost Plant of Mexico, gets its name from the waxy, powdery-looking coating on the leaves that make it look like a ghost at night, she said. “The wax serves as a sunscreen so the plant doesn’t get burned.”
Some succulents have medicinal properties, like aloe vera, while others have less attractive qualities, like the corpse flower, which emits a pungent smell akin to rotting meat.
All of them share one main commanility — a very limited desire for hydration. In the winter, most succulents prefer to be dry, said Alexander, who spritzes her succulents with a mister about every other week through the winter to simply dampen the surface.
Succulents come in a variety of colors — like the dark red leaves of Dragon’s Blood to the bright green leaves of Angelina — and some even boast colorful blooms. Ballard showed some colorful slides of sedum, a type of succulent known as stone crops. “They call them stone crops because they grow in the outcropping of rocks. They’re very trouble free, and they’ll spread and bloom for years,” he said.
They’re often used to add a splash of color to rock gardens, stone walkways and rocky cliffs. “Just sweep some seeds down into the cracks and they’ll take off and grow all on their own,” said Ballard. They’re a great thing to plant on a steep slope that you’d rather not mow.
The plants come in a variety of colors like yellow, white and green. If you plant them in clusters, you can create waves of color, Ballard said, or let them cascade down a rock wall for a waterfall effect.
Their combined beauty and versatility make succulents an excellent choice for gardeners of all skill levels, he said.
The Hancock County Master Gardeners Association meets monthly. For more information, follow the group on Facebook or visit www.hancockmga.com.
