Nice container, nicely arranged plants.

I can't tell if 3hrs of sun is enough or not, I keep most of my succulents in full sun for most of the day (from sunrise until about 6pm or so).

Squirrels and chipmunks dig a lot, they will chomp on plants sometimes. Rabbits don't dig, but if something tastes good to them, they will eat that plant in no time.

Watering with syringe is not something I do, but yes, you can direct water that way. But if they are all in same soil, water will dissipate thruout anyway...so not only specific plant gets it - jmo. Personally, I prefer very gritty mix, and water generously when needed.

Humidity isn't succulents best friend. Pay attention to oedema and any fungal disease - if one plants gets it, it spreads much faster when they are densly packed.

Thank you for your help! The pot may end up with more sun than I think because we had the tree above it trimmed last September and I'm not sure how much was taken off. But I'd say 3 hours of direct sun at the VERY minimum. Probably more like 4-5.

Squirrels will be the death of me. They're digging up all of my pots. I'm hoping that because the plants are packed tightly and because it's essentially rocks that make up the soil, it will deter them.

I will have to google oedema to learn the symptoms, and I'll keep a close eye on them and inspect weekly at least for fungal/disease issues.

Squirrels are evil and the bane of my existence. They nibble every expensive and slow growing succulent I had outdoors. Have it on camera.

Definitely raise the pot to save your deck.

Watch out for strings of cool rainy days, you may opt to move your pot temporarily if it gets really bad in the spring and fall.

Thanks for validating my suspicions, ewwmayo. I'll keep an eye on those guys and watch the rainy weather as well. I can always overturn an empty clear storage box over the top if the rain gets too torrential, as the pot is quite heavy now!

Squirrels won't care how tightly you packed that pot. What they won't pull, they'll trample. And laugh, while doing it! I agree with raising the pot to the deck.

On that note, I think it makes more sense to plant sparsely and allow them to grow into the pot rather than start out so dense. Fungus will probably get the thin-leaved ones first, mites will get the rest later. There will be zero air movement under all those leaves.

I've seen Rina solve this packing issue by breaking up the space with rocks so it still looks nice and populated but not physically cramped.

Thanks for the tip! I'll take a look at it tonight and consider taking a few plants out to improve the air flow.

Okay Pagan I had a few extra minutes when I went home for lunch so I pulled out a few succulents. Is this an improvement? Still too full?

Lol! You might want to get a bit more aggressive:).

But it's so prettyyyyyyyy. Hmm okay how about I take out the ones I highlighted in orange here?

Lolololololol!!! You are cracking me up!

i think pagan is going to tell you to remove a bit more....lol

one of the plants you removed the first time is literally just a leaf with roots. I am actually laughing....lol

Haha glad I can bring someone some laughter :-) Now that you say that, yeah what I removed was pretty minimal. What do you think I should take out?

Oh gosh, I don't know. I'd probably take out the fuzzy kalanchoe. But then I'm really not the expert in these matters.

But you did make me laugh so much, and I thank you for that:)

You could leave it as is - but have to watch like a hawk for any sign of fungus, rot. It may not happen, but you are in quite humid climate and you said there are 'generous' rains. These will make having plants packed tight more prone to problems. So judge yourself...I am in very colder zone and would not pack so many plants together - but that's just my liking and opinion (wouldn't want to have that extra worry). I would have potted each plant separately into their own pot and sit each pot inside of decorative one - easy to remove if needed. But you wouldn't be able to squeeze all those plants there...

Your planter is very nice, and it is pretty all potted up. Kalanchoe beharensis could grow quite tall (I have 'Fang' and it is at least 18" tall). If it grows tall & healthy, it will 'tower' over other plants, it will free some air space - can't tell you how much it will grow in a season. What will you do with plants when it gets cold?

Thank you for your input, Rina! Yes, the Fang were about 10" tall when I got them (on sale, 75% off because they were overgrown and the trunk was broken. I chopped them off and rooted the cuttings over the past two months. Since they don't have super developed root systems, they may not grow too much for the next few months.

How do people like Debra Baldwin, Laura Eubanks and others get away with putting so many plants in one pot if they're doomed to rot or be eaten by mites and mealybugs? Is it because they don't live in humid Kansas?

I know many people on this forum are collectors who like to keep each plant in its own pot, which is absolutely fine! But I personally am more of a designer type than a collector. I like the look of multiple plants in one pot!

As for your question about what happens when it gets cold...The plants will have almost 6 months outside before I need to bring them in. Our average first frost date is mid October, and when that time comes I'll disassemble the arrangement, clean them up and pot them individually to go under grow lights for the winter.

When you say "watch them like a hawk", is checking the whole pot over thoroughly once a week during the summer (and not as thoroughly a few times a week) enough?

It isn't absolute that your plants get bugs - but you asked what to watch for...

Don't forget that many arrangements are made 'for show' - to sell, to take photos for books, magazines, to post on youtube, to decorate for occasion such as wedding or similar, and so on. Not that ppl do not use those in the gardens or patios - they do. But no one will tell you how long plants lasted; or if they had any problems. And sometimes, there is no problems. And often, damaged plant gets tossed and replaced. If that's OK with you, then do not worry. And I dare to suggest that beautiful arrangement in beautiful bowl will probably sell well; or at least will tempt ppl to buy many plants and containers and try to duplicate - and that is OK for business! But do you think they care much about what happens in few weeks or months? - I don't think so, stores would not sell, for example, terrariums full of succulents if they really cared about long term health of plants...They are in business of selling after all and pretty and beautiful sells. And more than happy if ppl keep coming back to buy more - for whatever reason.

By watching like a hawk I was thinking more of getting rid of any problem asap, not suggesting that you should be a helicopter succulent mom, lol.

I was only asking about what you do at the end of summer since - again, just me - I wouldn't want to do all that work...I do not repot succulents 2x/year since it is not needed for succulents and it would be having more work.

I was going to say stuff but Rina said it all already.

Especially the last part, about the amount of work it will require to maintain such a pot which, even then, won't guarantee long-term success.

Thanks Rina and Pagan! Yes I can be a bit of a helicopter succulent mom at times haha but seriously, thanks for the advice! I do agree that stores sell "pretty" rather than "healthy for the plants long term"

That being said, I do enjoy pushing the limits and seeing what succulents will do in different situations (like this hanging succulent picture frame).

I don't mind the work too much as I have a smaller vegetable garden than I'd like, and succulents keep me sane during the winter when it's too cold to garden outside!

I think I'll take out another plant or two and leave it after that. After a few weeks of careful watching, I'll evaluate whether or not to leave it in the combination pot.

There are many ppl here that have hundred +++ succulents. I grow vegetables too, right now there are about 85 seedlings growing inside...and other plants are waiting to go outdoors as soon as it is warm enough. That is why I don't need any extra work. I do have other hobbies too, but day has only 24 hrs.

Nothing wrong with experimenting. Whatever makes one happy...

Debra Baldwin and Laura Eubanks are in Southern California where the climate is more arid than in other areas, including KC. Laura Eubanks doesn't even let succulents callous before sticking them back in the ground.

Your arrangement is beautiful. I can tell you put a lot of thought into it, and it was fun too. By any chance did you take Baldwin's online class through crafty?

PS I like combo pots, but have plants growing in their own pots as well. I've made a few combo pots, but they look like all the leftovers potted together....not good~!

PPS In my opinion (and I'm a newby), you'll want to be extra cautious about overwatering. Use the skewer to test. Not sure if you get summer rain, but unless it's bone dry, cover it or bring in. Check each plant to see if anything looks "different." I would also watch the bases of the plants for fallen leaves so they can be removed and of course any squishiness. I'm sure a weekly check would be fine.

Thanks socks! I have another smaller combo pot on the patio table about 15 feet away from this one and I've been able to cover it with an overturned storage tub during heavy spring rains. For this one on the deck, I'll probably just move the coffee table on top of it and lay a tarp or cover on top of that to shelter it. I have a moisture meter to use as well as skewers to test the dryness

I didn't know that Baldwin offered online classes! I'll have to look into that. So far I've just watched a few of her videos and read all three of her books :-) Always learning new things!

Here's a link to the class, I think it's $20, but I cannot imagine it offers more than her good videos. Maybe? I'm tempted, but cheap! Too bad we couldn't take it together!

https://www.craftsy.com/gardening/classes/stunning-succulent-arrangements/35155?cr_linkid=Debra-LeeBaldwin_4864_F&cr_source=Debra+Lee+Baldwin&cr_medium=Instructor&cr_maid=60761&couponCode=2b6a3a2d9

Oh goodness. I had no idea Craftsy had a gardening section! I agree, too bad we can't take it together! I'm cheap as well, and would rather spend the $20 on more plants and instead just check books out from the library :-)

Maybe I'll watch it this winter when it's cold out and I need some gardening in my life!

Hmmm...that would buy me 2 nice plants...haha. Can't you just have a pic in front of you and duplicate what you see - after doing 1 or 2 you won't even need pics. Sunflowers already made a nice one :) And as tips on how to care for plants, there is soooo much excellent info here, all for free (sorry for butting in!)

I'm with Rina! Except it might buy me more than 2 plants! Most of the ones in the planter I created were from Home Depot last Christmas when they had 4" pots of succulents for $3.33 each. I stocked up haha. But I suppose it'd be $10 per plant if they were bigger.

Where do you all buy your succulents?

There are lots of books on succulent arrangements at the library. Free to borrow books and many ones online for succulent arrangements, at least at mine.

Quality of growing advice is... often mediocre but there are pretty photos and different ideas.

Price depends a lot on type -and size too- of plants. Ones I would buy are at least $8 around here, going up from there. I buy from anywhere if I see anything I like, not much dying plants on sale anymore as I see often in HD or other BBS. But if in good shape, doesn't matter to me where they come from :)

Ewwmayo do you have any books or website recommendations for someone who wants to continue learning about succulents?

I agree, Rina. I've had pretty good luck at my local nurseries, except one of them doesn't label any of the plants beyond "echeveria" which bugs me a bit. I've also been lucky enough to happen on some really nice ones from Altman Plants at Home Depot. But they only look good for a few days after delivery, then they get severely etiolated. I happened upon a new shipment last week and took home the following: echeveria elegans, echeveria subsessili variegata, echeveria chalk rose, a watch chain crassula, a sedum with tiny silvery white rosettes and a beautiful echeveria imbricata, which I've been searching for for months. 6 plants for about $30! I have a problem.

I'll post a picture of the imbricata tonight if I can remember. It's potted in its own pot so it can grow and hopefully produce some pups.

Until then, I'll leave you with this transformation. Found a succulent labeled as a perle von nurnberg and bought it in November. The pot had a date on it of 2014! I wondered if it had potential. Trimmed some of the pups off to propagate them and ended with this in March....

Don't really have any I can recommend in particular... combo pots aren't my specialty. But here are a bunch I've read online from the biggest metro library in my area:

Thanks! I've read the first two, but I'll take a look and see if the others are at my library!

Rina...you are not butting in!! You are joining in! Your comments are always appreciated.

As for the class, it looks like a lot of "cutsey" stuff, and although I like combo pots and plants in non-traditional containers, I don't want to be bothered with wreaths and that sort of thing. Yes, you can get more other "goodies" for $20, more fun than the class.