I do my front beds are rocked with river stone. I do need to add more rock.

I suck as succulents!

I underwater them and the Florida skies likes to over water them! One day I will get the hang of them... or find the right ones!

What is the story on that Giant Rock!!!!

I dream of these....

I need to keep the grass and weeds from the A/C unit wh/ is on the backside of the house. The whole back end along the house does not grow much of anything, even grass coverage is more weed than grass. It's an L shape and the little part of the L keeps the area in the shade all morning long, then in afternoon the sun blazes the area.

I should be so lucky to even have something like this... but I want more!!!

Really want something like below but just half of the picture ( House/Rock garden/ Rock path) would be nice.

Ohhh like this, but with more rocks between the plants, like the pics above!

Ohh to dream....

and am I crazy or finding rocks in florida is not really a thing, right. I went to Tennessee last year and rocks are everywhere, but here the only rocks I see are at Lowes!

If I didn't like plants something like this would be cool.

SMC,

I'm no succulent expert (just got into them about 5 years ago) but the biggest mistake I made when starting was thinking that our Florida sand would be great for growing succulents. Deserts are sand right and cactus grow in deserts, right? Well, I lived in the sandhills in Williston and my almost totally sand soil was awful for succulents. That sand wasn't loose but rather tightly packed and didn't drain well. And sucs don't like wet feet. That's why you need to mix perlite and oyster shells (or chicken grit) and light potting mix into the sand if you're putting them in the ground so the sand doesn't pack and will drain.

Also, I didn't put down landscaping cloth as I wanted the plants to spread. BIG mistake as the river rocks kept sinking into the sand and I had to constantly replenish them.

I could not find big rocks anywhere around me....I sure wish I had brought some with me from Ohio. So, I ended up with more of a zen river rock succulent garden. The few decent size rocks I found I gathered driving around the backroads around me house on my 4 wheeler right after they scraped the limerock roads :)

I wanted a rock garden like the ones in your pics too. I had one in Ohio. But, most of those plants are cooler weather plants...more an Alpine garden. You could probably create a similar look IF you could find the rocks and Florida friendly flowering plants with a similar look and succulents. BTW...many sucs such as aloe and haworthia bloom are are very attractive to hummingbirds.

Here's a few pics of the rock garden in Williston just a month after planting in 2013. When I moved in early March, the garden had filled in so much and the plants were much taller. I'm sure that it is a jungle by now without me there. Our property sat on the corner of two roads so I planted this on that corner. It was roughly 40' long and 5 feet wide. I'm almost ashamed to share the pics as it didn't turn out anything like my vision :(

Female rubythroat hummingbird enjoying Soap Aloe blooms.

There is a Alpine/rock garden forum on Gardenweb if you're really interested.

Oh, the rock......well Joe said it was here when he bought the place. He was told that it was from the bottom of the lake across the road from us when it was dredged. I'm not sure how they ever got that thing moved into our yard LOL

Rhonda

Thank you for sharing the pictures!!!

I know I wont be able to do anything like the pinterest pics, I need to see what "real" ones look like. Knowing my level of time and attention to detail I wont even be able to do half as well as you did!!!!

ADHD, Life, and Money have a way of letting all my gardening ideas drift into directions completely different than the original intent!

(if you saw the mulch matters post, you'll see what I mean!!! LOL)

Thank you for the info about the landscaping cloth! I used some a couple of yrs ago in a flower bed and then ended up ripping it all up early this year (it really helped w/ weeds, but I wanted to expand the number of planting and the soil was worse than ever bc of it, so it had to go.)

Everything sinks into the sand here so yes, I will need to use the fabric for that, even if it does not prevent all the weeds, saving the rocks would be VERY important! (I had been debating back and forth in my head if I should or not)

I think the very reason why when you google Florida rock gardens you only find succulents is b/c you need something with shallow roots that can be tucked into small places. If you sink flowers with long roots your rocks sink right along with it!!!!

I would like to see about making some concrete "flat rocks" for the stepping stones - I have no searched that out just yet, but I think it is a thing. Maybe there is even a way to make some fake medium size rocks... ball up some chicken wire and slather w/ colored quick dry concrete...??? The steps and lager stones would help take up space, cut down on how much lil rocks I would have to buy. and maybe I could hide some pots behind some of the bigger rocks when I want a flower among the rocks.

I think your rock garden looked great! and it really helps give me some realistic ideas - pinterest is great... great for false hope!!! lol

I didn't find soil cloth necessary. My succulent planting area began when I set down "temporarily", bits of shallow seedling starter trays I was nursing small succulents in. They were happy in the location, so I dug out some of the sand/dirt to lower them in. Over time the black plastic of the trays disintegrated and the plants remain(ed) and multiply. I do hit it with the hose when watering.

Elsewhere, my small succulents in a shallow dish started shriveling up in the May-June drought, so I started watering them along with the usual water-needy plants: big improvement. I'm learning to ignore what is written about amounts of water needed for any plant - especially succulents, and closely watch my plants.

SMCheese, sounds like you are a Planner. I'm more experimental and possibly lazy. Seem to fall in love with a plant, bring it home, and try it out in a small way, then build on that.

I long for an interesting large rock like Rhonda's. Meanwhile, I planted succulents in a dying tree stump in light shade. It's slowly disintegrating and is now horizontal, but still makes an interesting and attractive mini garden for small plants (and weeds - easily removed). In rainy weeks, it sprouts artillery fern all over, changing from brown background to green.

I am attempting to be a planner bc after 3 yrs of gardening I am slowly learning that I get my bright ideas at the wrong planting times or I start projects without having all the materials.

I have had way more failures than success, which is not the worse thing, but when I spend time/ money on my garden it diverts time/ money away from kids and husband. I am trying to be much more mindful.

My mistakes do equal learning experiences, I just don't want them to be at the expense of my family so much any more.