Lithops Love.

I love me some lithops. You might be thinking "my word, what are you talking about?" Well...I am talking about lithops the plant...also known as Living Stone plant.

Can you tell which are real and which is the plant? Hard right? That's why these little friends are so amazing to me. 

They wear camo well.

Just like other succulents these fellas like sunshine. I planted mine in a terrarium with sand and stones to play where's Waldo...

After reading about Lithops I knew I had to add them to my collection. They flower in the fall and the color of the flower is typically listed as a W or Y -- for white or yellow. The flower forms right in the glorious middle and voila -- the where's Waldo game gets a lot easier!

Did you find all three?

Once they flower I'll share more photos...

The King is in the House...errrr...the Garden!

The king has arrived.

King Tut Papyrus. It is my kind of plant. It is easy. It holds the graceful movement of a ballet dancer as it blows in the breeze but it also screams Dr. Seuss to me...fun and whimsical.

You just can't go wrong here folks. Well, actually I guess maybe you could go wrong. Here's how to go right with Papyrus:

• Papyrus likes...err...loves water. In fact, you can even plant it in water containers. I have mine in a container on a balcony but I've plugged the drain holes in the said container.
• Papyrus also likes sun. Keep in a sunny to partly shady spot.
• Expect King Tut Papyrus to grow up and get big pretty quick. This is no itsy bitsy...this is the real deal and it can grow up to 5 feet tall and 5 feet wide. Mine doubled in size in the last 4 months and is now 4ish feet tall.

King Tut is a dwarf version of Cyperus Papyrus. While it is a perennial...if you're planting it in a container you should bring this green baby inside for the winter and setup a home for it where it can still get plenty of water.

I love the look of papyrus in containers. I also like to add a draping plant as surrounding cover. In this pot I used Vinca Vine to get that draping look. But Potato Vine or other vines would be nice additions. Or, if you're looking for color, Papyrus is nice because it has a hearty top but provides enough room right at the soil for other planting.

Have you planted Papyrus in the past or do you plan to in the future? I'd love to know what you think of it and what you paired/plan to pair it with.

Succulent + Driftwood Sculpture

Learning is right up my alley. Seriously, give me something new to naw on and I am a pig in you know what. That's why when I found out about Sprout Home Chicago classes, I was real happy. I've taken many of the classes now (although I missed urban bee keeping because I decided I didn't want to keep bees on a patio in a high-rise) and so I was inspired to make this baby.

This started when I happened upon some driftwood. Not just any driftwood, but a real beauty, from a pet supply store that was going out of business. I instantly had a vision for a sculpture-esqe piece and knew exactly where it would fit in my place. I purchased succulents from Sprout and already had a supply of dirt for succulents and of moss from other projects. I've bought moss online at Moss Acres although for a small project like this you can likely buy it from a local shop near you. 

I called around to welding shops in chicago and found Armitage Welding. What a joy they were. I made a drawing of my vision for the metal base and they went to work on building it. I wasn't sure that it was going to work and get this, they even called me a few days after I picked it up to check to see if it worked -- how nice is that!!!??? I could have painted the base but decided it is beautiful as-is.

I very carefully drilled holes in the back of the driftwood and then screwed the steel plate to the wood. I was a little worried that my design wouldn't hold up the weight of the wood, but it worked!

Next I planted the succulents very carefully in the biggest opening in the driftwood and then surrounded the plantings with moss to try to hold everything in place. Moss is amazing if you ask me.

That's it. I water it about once every week and because of the vertical nature of it, I concocted up a system where I put a bag at the end of the driftwood to catch access water so that it doesn't pool up on the floor. So far so good. I also use a spray bottle and lightly spray everything a couple times a week (especially the moss as it likes the spray bath A LOT!)