Succulent love

I love succulents.

My granny loved succulents.

When i would visit her, she would show me her collection. She had rows and rows of them. At the time, I couldn't quite see the beauty in them. To my child eyes, they looked like mean, spiky things. I don't think it helped that for some reason, I remember them being covered in cobwebs, but that might just be my imagination. I know her love for them wasn't just my imagination. I remember her telling me all about them. I wish I could remember her words, but my memory is a silent one.

Succulents for sale at a market in Uzes, France

As my life progressed, I didn't really have any other succulents in my life. My parents were more keen on traditional flowers like roses, and our yard had agapanthus, frangipanis and magnolias. And again, I wasn't all that interested. I quite liked picking a bunch of lavender for a vase in my room, but other than that, gardening didn't take my fancy.

A few years down the line, I married a very keen gardener. We don't have a garden, we have to make do with a terrace, but my husband has filled every possible inch with pot plants that he lovingly tends day in, day out. It would take a few more years to finally pique my interest.

My first succulent 

Then, one day, I received a little succulent as a gift. I don't know what its proper name is. It is greyish green with pinks edges. I fell in love. Where my husband loves the actual tending of his, i am more drawn to the aesthetic of mine (lucky it doesn't need all that much care!).  The colours are amazing. The texture and shape. Some almost look like resin. They can look almost unnatural and hyper-real. I think they are fascinating.

Say Aloe Vera. Geddit? 

If like me, you love succulents, have a look at a little pin board of succulent pictures i have been putting together on Pinterest. Incidentally, if you haven't checked out Pinterest yet, I suggest you do soon, because it is AWESOME!