DIY Succulent Centerpiece Tutorial

Succulents remain popular in home decor, and I am personally a fan!  I love touches of green and nature throughout my house, although I don’t exactly have a green thumb.  But, I wanted to design an arrangement for our dining room table, and this DIY succulent centerpiece fits our rustic/farmhouse/crafstman/neutral style perfectly.  My mom found this tray on clearance at a local plant nursery.  I scooped it up and filled it with plenty of succulents to bring a bit of nature indoors.

Here is a step-by-step tutorial on how to put together your own succulent arrangement. 

How to Make a Succulent Arrangement (Step-By-Step Pictures Below) 

What You’ll Need:

-a box, crate, or planter (I love this one and this one comes with a plastic liner!)

-clear plastic

-glue (I used wood glue)

-rocks/stones

-sand

-small pebbles or decorative sand (what I used)

–Miracle Gro potting soil

-succulents**

-squirt bottle

Instructions

Step 1: Make sure your planter or box is fully lined with clear plastic.  Mine is only glued at the top.  You just don’t want the water to leak through.

Step 2: Layer the bottom of the box with rocks or stones.  Succulents do not need to sit in water, so you want plenty of air under the dirt.  I used some rocks that we had leftover from a yard project.

Step 3: Mix equal parts sand and potting soil.  The sand is less absorbent than the soil, and provides a drier environment for the succulents.  (If succulents sit in water for too long, they will rot).

Step 4: Put a layer of sand over the rocks.  Then add some of the dirt/sand mixture over the sand layer.

Step 5: Decide the layout of the succulents before planting them in the dirt.  Some succulents are trailing, so I placed those around the edges.  I also attempted to mix taller succulents in with the shorter ones. Plant one at a time, relatively shallow.

Step 6: Once they are all arranged and planted, carefully place a layer of pebbles or large “sand” over the top.

IMPORTANT: To water, use a squirt bottle – do not pour water over the soil.  Allow the dirt to dry completely before watering again.

**Jackpot!  I found an amazing selection of inexpensive succulents at our local farmers’ market.  You can also order them online, and I even found these beauties on Amazon!  Such a steal, by the way. 

STEP 1

STEP 2

STEP 3

STEP 4

STEP 5

STEP 6

Here is the finished product on our dining room table.  I am quite obsessed and I’m just praying I can keep them all alive!  

Our dining table seats 10, and this planter looks bigger in person on our large table.  I fit 25 succulents in it.

Don’t you love the fire trucks in this picture? #boymom 

Happy planting!  Thank you for reading.