Succulent Flowers and More

Flowers are a wonderful bonus on any succulent plant.  At the same time though, succulents can be shy when it comes to blooming.

Many succulents need higher temperatures in summer to set their blooming chemistry and, therefore, if we keep them indoors and our homes are climate controlled, they aren’t provided with that necessary temperature extreme.  Succulents that originate from cold-winter deserts, need winter dormancy and cold temperatures to induce spring blooms.

Generally speaking, if they are provided with the cold of winter, summer’s heat and a little fertilizer, they will put on a spectacular show.  Other times, a more intense light may be all that’s needed for successful flowering.

All of my succulents are kept outside and this year we’ve had a few colder than normal nights, coupled with a few warmer than usual days, and even though (technically) it’s still winter, some of my succulents are throwing flowers left and right all over the place.

Small, but stunning

Technically not a flower

A burst of orange

A cluster about to open

These are everywhere right now

Jelly Bean flower cluster

Open cluster on another Jelly Bean

How gorgeous are these?

Tiny flowers on my Chain of Hearts

If your succulents aren’t flowering as they should, find out what conditions prevail in the plants’ natural habitat.  This will give you clues regarding their specific growth conditions and the seasonal cycles they need.

But my succulents aren’t the only flowers I have in the garden right now.

A fuchsia about to open

Hibiscus – Big flower, little plant

One purple Crucifix Orchid opened

My orange Crucifix orchid still flowering

Everlasting Daisy

And of course, my grevilleas are ladened with flowers – I’ve already spoken about them, see How to Catch a Bee – and a few other flowers beginning to appear.  My camera battery is charged so I can capture those over the next week or so.

Over in the back corner, a magic tomato vine is growing and giving off handfuls of delicious fruit on a daily basis.  I call it a magic tomato vine because it was never planted, it simply sprung up all on its own last year and again this year.  every time I step outside, I have to harvest more tomatoes, I can hardly keep up with it, and although they are only tiny little cherry tomatoes, they are so sweet and bursting with flavour.

With the weather feeling a little warmer every day, I’ve no doubt, gardens are about to burst into life.  Personally, I’m patiently waiting to see my hippeastrums, but I’ll have to wait.  They don’t flower until late spring and Agapanthus then follows closely on their heals.

For now, I’m loving the flowers my succulents are throwing out.