Gardeners Cultivate Thriving Succulent Landscapes

Columnist Tom Karwin shares tips for creating beautiful and low-maintenance succulent gardens.

Apr. 16, 2026 at 8:53pm

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A brightly colored, high-contrast silkscreen print of a single, iconic succulent plant repeated in a tight grid pattern, utilizing flat, vibrant neon color palettes and heavy black outlines to transform an everyday garden object into modern pop art.Succulent plants take center stage in this vibrant, pop art-inspired illustration, reflecting their growing popularity as low-maintenance, drought-tolerant landscaping options.Santa Cruz Today

Gardening columnist Tom Karwin provides advice on how to successfully cultivate thriving succulent gardens. He highlights different succulent plant communities from regions like Chile, Mexico, and South Africa that can thrive in Mediterranean climates like California's Monterey Bay area. Karwin offers design concepts like using bold architectural succulents as focal points, creating succulent plant communities that mimic natural habitats, and blending succulents with other perennial plants.

Why it matters

As water scarcity and drought become more pressing issues, gardeners are increasingly turning to low-maintenance, drought-tolerant succulent plants to create beautiful and sustainable landscapes. Karwin's tips can help homeowners and gardeners in California and other Mediterranean climates design and maintain thriving succulent gardens.

The details

Karwin recommends mimicking the natural habitats of succulents by providing full sun, infrequent rainfall, and excellent drainage with 30-50% pumice or gravel. He advises allowing enough space for succulents to reach full size and accommodate offsets. Karwin also suggests organizing plants for seasonal interest, with aloes and aeoniums peaking in winter, ice plants and dudleyas in spring, and structural foliage dominating in summer. He outlines design concepts like using bold, architectural succulents as focal points, creating succulent plant communities that share growing conditions, and blending succulents with other Mediterranean-climate perennials.

  • The Monterey Bay Area Cactus and Succulent Society and Santa Cruz Bonsai Kai will hold their shows and sales on April 25 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and April 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The players

Tom Karwin

A past president of the Friends of the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum and the Monterey Bay Iris Society, a past president and Lifetime Member of the Monterey Bay Area Cactus & Succulent Society, a Lifetime UC Master Gardener, and a current member of the Pacific Horticultural Society and other garden-related societies.

Debra Lee Baldwin

A website that has a wealth of ideas and advice on gardening with succulent plants, which gardeners interested in this topic should explore.

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What they’re saying

“To create a succulent garden bed, mimic their natural habitats: provide full sun, infrequent rainfall and excellent drainage.”

— Tom Karwin, Gardening Columnist

What’s next

Gardeners planning to attend the upcoming plant sales should define their goals and apply the design concepts outlined in the article to create their own thriving succulent landscapes.

The takeaway

As water scarcity becomes a growing concern, succulents offer a sustainable and low-maintenance option for creating beautiful gardens that can thrive in Mediterranean climates. Karwin's tips on design, plant selection, and cultivation can help gardeners in California and similar regions cultivate stunning succulent landscapes.