Succulents, Design & Expert Succulent Advice

Debra Lee Baldwin is an award-winning author, journalist and horticulturist credited with launching worldwide interest in succulents with her three bestselling books on succulents. With over 9,000,000 views, Debra's YouTube Channel provides reliable, entertaining info on design and cultivation, plus interviews with renowned succulent experts and tours of world-class gardens.

Need a plant ID? Go to TYPES OF SUCCULENTS.
Worried about your succulent? Go to PESTS AND PROBLEMS.
Hope to grow succulents perfectly? Go to SUCCULENT CARE BASICS.
Need garden maintenance? See REFERRALS.
Something else? Use the Search Bar or menus above.

HOW-TO'S, TIPS & IDEAS

SUCCULENT DESIGN

Discover how to plan and design lovely, carefree succulent gardens in containers and in the ground. Also under Design you'll find firewise landscaping info, DIY gifts and projects, and holiday decorating ideas - all beautifully showcasing succulents.

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

SUCCULENT CARE

Get expert advice on growing, caring for and propagating succulents. Find out how to water, fertilize, control pests and diseases, overwinter succulents, grow them indoors, and by season and region. Under Varieties, view hundreds of labeled photos of easy-care kinds.

LOCAL & NATIONAL

SUCCULENT RESOURCES

Wondering where to find and purchase top-quality succulents? Which tools, books and supplies you need? It's all here under Resources, along with nurseries, public gardens and destinations in America's finest succulent city (San Diego) and beyond.

Subscribe to My Newsletter and Receive

Debra's 7 best succulents

In this free PDF exclusively for subscribers to my "Celebrating the Joy of Succulents" newsletter, you'll learn the 7 best easy-care succulents that thrive in pots and landscapes. Whether you're new to growing succulents or an experienced succulent "parent", you'll love these 7 beautiful plants.

Succulent Updates and Articles

Hannah Eubanks Del Mar Fair Succulent display garden (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

Jun 6 2023

See Hannah’s Award-Winning County Fair Garden

Hannah Eubanks, 25, of Design for Serenity (she's Laura Eubanks’ daughter and protégé), completed a herculean task: Creating a 1,750-square-foot succulent display for the Del Mar Fair Flower Show

Aeoniums in my garden (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

Jun 3 2023

Should You Water Aeoniums in Summer?

Conventional seasonal care advice for aeoniums is to "withhold summer water," info I've routinely passed along. But it's always bothered me. My own experience and observations indicated otherwise.

Plant-pot pairing at Oasis (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

May 24 2023

How to Pick Succulents for Special Pots

You know you’ve created an effective plant-pot pairing if every time you look at it, it delights you. Ideally, it exceeds the sum of its parts. But how to make that happen? You’re about to find out: Succulent plant-pot pairing—an art form in itself—is the topic of my latest video. In it you’ll learn…

Debra Lee Baldwin in her garden (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

May 5 2023

To Tree or Not to Tree? Ask Your Succulents

Do consider the need for shade when installing a succulent garden, especially if you—like me—live in a hot, dry region of the Southwest where winter frost is also a concern. Tree canopies moderate temperature extremes and create the dappled sunshine succulents love. Of course, not all succulents are the same. Twenty or more miles inland…

Debra Lee Baldwin with Echeveria imbricata and climbing roses (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

Apr 28 2023

Create a “Flower” Bed with Rosette Succulents

Easy-care rosette succulents resemble flowers and bloom beautifully too! Use them to create the look of a flowerbed without all the care and maintenance flowerbeds require. In the Idea Gallery below, see many marvelous images of garden beds, pots and planters full of rosette succulents. All photos have main succulents ID’d. May they spark your creativity…

Apr 12 2023

Succulent Spring Feeding

The best times to feed (fertilize) your succulents are in spring when daytime temps stay above 60 degrees F; and again in autumn or winter, right before a rainstorm. Note: Growers fertilize plants more often to promote faster growth. What if I don’t feed my succulents? It doesn’t much matter. They’ll likely grow faster and…

Mar 30 2023

Great Plants and Ideas from Arizona Gardens

These plants and ideas inspired by the annual spring Phoenix Garden Tour will work throughout the Southwest. What grows effortlessly in Arizona typically does well in dry, hot areas of Southern California---except of course for

Mar 18 2023

Recognize and Avoid Weedy Succulents

Here, you'll learn about and recognize succulents and cacti that become weedy, invasive nuisances if you make them too happy, and what to do to control them. Keep in mind

Ice plant and agave (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

Mar 10 2023

Gap Fillers for New Succulent Gardens

A subscriber asks: "What should I do to fill garden gaps while waiting for succulents to get big? I've put in a variety and left room for future growth. How can I make my new garden look finished?" I have several ideas, but first...

Rain-drenched aloes (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

Mar 2 2023

Succulents and Way Too Much Rain

This year I figured my drenched aloes might finally succumb. They got quite a pounding. The gutter overflows 20 feet above them, then continues down-slope. Yet they're fine. I have some theories why.

Jade (Crassula ovata) in bloom (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

Feb 23 2023

How and Why Jades Prune Themselves

Because it thins itself, jade plant (Crassula ovata) and its cultivars are extremely low-maintenance. These shrub succulents are wonderfully low-water, aesthetically pleasing garden shrubs.

Janet Orr in her garden (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

Feb 17 2023

Design Ideas from an Arizona Artist’s Garden

Wait 'til you see these desert garden design ideas at Arizona artist Janet's Orr's home! Her whimsical outdoor gallery shows her eye for design, skill as a ceramic artist, love of color, and superb succulent savvy.

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I don't like (or trust) websites stuffed with ads, and I figure you don't either. It's ungracious to make visitors hunt for info buried amid commercials.

If you'd like to support me (thank you!): Obtain my books, watch my videos, and follow links to the few vendors I'm affiliated with. Want to use my text or photos? All I ask is attribution: Imbed the excerpt with a link to the page on this site that it came from.

Mainly, do learn from and enjoy my site. It's my pleasure to share a career's worth of information with you! -- Debra Lee Baldwin

See More on My Succulent YouTube Channel