Opening up a new world of succulent gardening…

I must thank Sandra for introducing me succulents. She gave me some cuttings of from her garden about 4 years ago, some of which I still have today.

A few years ago, all I had on my balcony were Impatiens , chilli and tomatoes. We thoroughly enjoyed the joyous colours of the impatiens, and the wonderful flavours of the fresh chilli. Because I was using fresh chilli from the garden, my dishes somehow seemed more alive and delicious. Unfortunately, we had less luck with the tomato plants, as insects took over. I battled hard to keep them at bay, but eventually I gave in. The awful bugs made my skin crawl and they kept coming back.

Eventually, the tomato plants had to go. I dug them out of their pots, and the garden slowly died. When summer was over, I was left with more empty pots where the Impatiens thrived. Gone were the bursting colours that lit up the dull balcony. Then finally, the chilli plant died too. We left it to fend for itself, when we went away on our honeymoon (Yes, it was cruel!).

We felt extremely refreshed after our holiday to Malaysia and Thailand. I had no plans for our balcony. I blamed myself for killing all our plants, and had lost my confidence in my ability to manage a garden. The dull balcony seemed even duller, with many empty pots.

One day, I mentioned the sad state of my balcony, and Sandra offered me some cuttings from her garden. I did not know then that it would open up a new world of succulent gardening for me!

Jade plant / Crassula argentea – one of my bigger succulent plants. It has grown substantially, and was originally a cutting from Sandra.

Aloe - this plant was a Christmas present a few years ago. Like the Jade plant, it has also grown substantially over the years, and even gave me some small Aloes.