1. Succulents for
the Home
Garden, Willamet
te Valley OR
Linda R McMahan, botanist
and horticulturist, Oregon
State University
Extension, McMinnville, OR

2. Succulents for the Home
Garden – What We Will Cover
 Some Techniques and some cautions
 Plants that do well in Oregon’s Willamette
Valley
 A few final words
 Questions – during or after

3. Major Strategy—Use Pots
 Why?
 Succulents like
good drainage
 Raising above the
ground raises the
temperature a little

4. Kinds of Pots
 Many different
kinds will work
 Troughs (cement or
rock planters)
 Regular pots
 Mounded soil

5. Soil?
 Ifdirectly in the
garden, add
organic matter
and mound up soil
to provide
drainage
 In pots, you can
add sand or rocks
to the soil and
make sure
drainage is open

6. Rockeries and Rock Walls
 Many will also do
quite well in
rockeries (rock
gardens) and rock
retaining walls
 This picture is from
California, but it
provides the idea

7. A newly constructed and a
mature Rock Garden --
 The basic structure
is rocks—the soil fills
in the holes
 A pile of rocks or
rocks placed in a
garden are not
usually considered
to be a rock
garden

8. A Fool-Proof Sedum
Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’
 Grows well in a
sunny border—no
special
requirements
 Readily available
 Attractive
butterflies
 Bronze fall color

9. The Best Sedum
Sedum spathulifolium
 Native to Oregon
 Prefers drainage but
open ground may
be OK
 Does not die back
during the winter like
non-native sedums
 Widely available
 Many color forms
available

10. Sedum spathulifolium
 Butterflyhost plant
 Attracts butterflies
‘Moonglow’

11. Sedum oreganum – another
good Oregon native
 Best
in pots or
containers

12. Sedum oregonense, also
native to Oregon
 Another native
sedum to look for
 Much fussier about
drainage

13. Native sedums in mounded
soil surrounded by rocks and
other plants

14. An innovative way to
showcase native sedums in a
private garden

15. Hens and Chicks, Echeveria
species and cultivars
 Many cultivars
available
 Nearly foolproof it
they get enough
drainage
 Native Mexico and
southward in the
New World Echeveria elegans photo:
Wikipedia.org

16. House leeks, Sempervivum
tectorum
 Old World
Species, Native to
Europe and the
Alps
 Used much like
hens and chicks
Photo: Wikipedia

17. Brittle pricklypear, Opuntia
fragilis
 Native to Western
U.S.
 Have seen grown
in pots or raised
beds in the
Willamette Valley
 Several related
Opuntia may be
available
Al Schneider @ USDA-NRCS PLANTS
Database

18. Pendulous yucca, Yucca
recurvata
 Evergreen
 USDA Zone 7
 Drought
tolerant, full sun
Photo courtesy of Pat Breen OSU
Landscape Plant Identification site ©
Oregon State
University, http://oregonstate.edu/dept
/ldplants/

19. Soapweed, Yucca glauca
 USDA Zone 3
 Full Sun, drought
tolerant
Photo courtesy of Pat Breen OSU
Landscape Plant Identification site ©
Oregon State University,
http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/

20. Consider making your own
troughs— recipes and
instructions can be found
online

21. Whatever your method,
Thanks and have a wonderful
time with succulents in your
garden