Spring n’ Succulents

SPRING makes me anxious. Not in an adverse way, but in an eager and contently impatient way. I am a summer baby. I live off of sunshine, bare feet and being outdoors in the warm air: the hotter the better. Spring makes me eager for longer days and shorter nights and impatient for the real warmth and brilliance of     S u m m e r. 

So this year, I have spent my spring days remedying my anxiousness with some gardening.

I have been inspired by Igor – Urban Jungle Blogger and Happy Interior extraordinaire – and I have consequently discovered the wild and wonderful world of succulents.

(Is it just me, or is succulent one of the best words in the English language?)

Since succulents are summer babies and originate from arid areas, they are able to store water in their leaves and stems, which make them brilliantly easy to care for. Better yet, they can adapt really well to new and strange climates (this includes being at the mercy of non-green-thumb people like me) AND they come in an almost infinite array of colours, sizes and shapes…

 

and what better home for one of my succulents than this beautiful artisan ceramic planter which has moved around the world with me! (below).

In 2006 I found myself on an Easter Escape road trip with a friend to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Nestled in the gorgeous Smoky Mountains is an historic Old Mill offering artisan flour, pantry items and pottery as well! This pot has survived my moves from the US to Belgium to Switzerland and finally to Germany… it’s been almost 10 years!

 

(the poster in the collage above is from J. Stone, an artist based in Florida. Please visit their website and be inspired)