Cindy Hewatt has a beautiful thing for succulents!
"I live in a little town call Walnut Creek, 30 minutes east side of San Fransisco in California. Gardening is my passion, although i’m still new to it, only 5 years experience. I started fell in love with succulents about 4 years ago and gradually I have accumulated so many, my half acre property has become cluttered with potted succulents everywhere. So, I decided to move them to the front garden since our front yard was empty a year ago and California is in drought. But man, they grow so fast, even I give away cuttings to friends, and get the clippings to make arrangements from it, the garden still looks too full. The succulent in the pots from first photo are all clippings from the front yard garden.
I’m not a gardener who really knows how to create, yet, so there is not much style in my garden photos…but sometimes I try to copy someone else’s ideas, like placing an orb in the garden is definitely one of them, and that’s from Cherry Ong, a Facebook friend of mine who lives in Canada and also a very talented gardener and she knows how to garden with style, I mean big style! Hopefully one day I will have some extra time to take a landscape design class, then I can really garden with style!"
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Comments
Cindy: Your garden is fabulous. I can't believe only 5 years experience. I love the interplay of colors, shapes and textures. It is amazing how much color and interest a garden can have with almost no flowers. Beautiful.
It all looks great to me and with LOTS of style! I can only garden with succulents in containers, , to have the freedom of planting in ground would be unbelievable. Great job and glad you shared your garden. Beautiful!!
You have mastered growing & arranging succulents. Having all that color in the midst of a drought is impressive to say the least. Good work, Joe
Hi, Cindy, well, it didn't take but but a second before I had to click "pin" and save your succulent filled birdbath to my Super Succulent Fun Pinterest board...see, you're already becoming an inspiration to others! You can't have chosen a better person than Cherry as your cyber mentor...her ideas and energy seem endless. Your choices of succulents and how you have combined them all seem delightful...you are already rocking the "style" thing so congrats to you!
Beautiful garden! You have mastered a very important garden design rule.
Right plant in the right place.
Gardening is so much easier when you choose plants that grow well in your conditions.
I especially like your succulents in the bird bath. Your gardening style looks very fun. Great plant selections. Thanks for sharing!
Great garden! I am usually not a succulents fan, but this one I really like. I think it's because you have mastered the right plant in the right place. Really lovely.
You fooled us! Only 5 years experience? You have talent! Thanks for sharing...
What a beautiful garden. The Aeonium in the leaf shaped pot is a clever idea. I had to look twice at it to realize it wasn't a flower!
One look at these photos and everyone will know that you have an amazing instinctive gardening style Cindy! I really mean it and I hope everyone chimes in with me here. I'm pretty sure many GPODers are drooling at your garden photos. It would be a total dream for me to be able to plant succulents in my own garden and enjoy them all year round. You've certainly created a succulent sanctuary in Walnut Creek.
Anyway, for all of you wondering about that vignette with the orb that Cindy created, here it is. It is so worth sharing.
Thank you for posting this photo Cherry, I have send them 10 photos in total, however there are 5 didn't get posted and 3 of them are with orbs in it...I guess i will post them on Facebook later on.
Don't worry Cindy... we can still share them with everyone. If there's a will, there's a way. Wink!
Cindy, those of us that love the various shapes, textures and colors of succulents are envious of your being able to plant these beauties in the ground as opposed to having to bring them all inside for a long winters rest! You are so lucky to have a fabulous collection surrounding your home and I bet a lot of neighbors stop to gaze at your gardens in awe!
Well done, Cindy! Style comes from within, you certainly have what it takes! By all means, take design classes, then stick with what appeals to you and you'll be happy. To have done so much in 5 years is amazing and to have everything growing well is a great achievement in itself.
Such a beautiful assortment and layout of plants, Cindy! This is one of those gardens where i'd need a cup of coffee and some time to examine all the little treasures tucked in everywhere ... one wonders what the rest of the half acre contains? Thanks for sharing.
Cindy, you are overflowing with style and instinctive garden-design sense. Your garden full of succulents is absolutely amazing. I think I'll have to come back and look at these photos and the one Cherry has shared over and over. If I linger too long I might die of envy! Super fantastic.
One more class act in Cindy's garden to check out Tim. I hope Cindy doesn't mind me sharing this with you.
The additional photos are charming! Such a great collection of textures, shapes and colors. It like the most amazing succulent container ever, but in the ground. Love every inch.
More photos under VikkiB's comment (as requested)...am I killing you? LOL.
I'm trying to experience my envy is short doses so that I survive until my garden starts growing........
Whoa, Cindy....I bet your neighbors relish the idea that they live next to a succulent botanic heaven! How smart to use such fantastic shapes and textures in your drought tolerant garden. Nope, doesn't look like a mere 5 years of experience to me, and yes, you are a natural.
Cherry is one of the most creative and talented designers. You've done well to follow her lead! Now, excuse me as I have to go back and study each photo again.....
Well - no talent huh! Your garden is just what I need! I have spent about three days pounding my brain for ideas re a difficult and windy exposed bump of garden overlooking a lake outside a pool enclosure. Having decided that, maybe, succulents would be a good idea, I opened GPOD to find a miracle. Wow! Thank you Cindy, I can now look more closely at your lovely gift and plan and SHOP accordingly. I think you and Cherry have similar genes.
Love the turtle!
Wonderful and I would say you have a great sense of design, Congratulations on a job well done!
I can only echo everyone else and say, Bravo! Well done! I too love succulents but the really showy ones won't survive outdoors here in WA. so I have several pots in the house. Yours are magnificent and you are way too modest - you overflow with style! And you can even have tulips in the ground! The deer eat mine so what tulips I have I keep on the deck. But I get even - I plant lots of daffodils and hyacinths and alliums. Gardening is so much fun and so creative, and it is great to be able to share plants and cuttings with friends. Keep up the good work.
P.S. that Aeonium in the leaf pot is fantastic! Love it!
Between your skill and these uncanny plants you have formed a dynamic duo of beauty. Have always gazed at these plants at the garden center, but felt too inadequate to the challenge. In the East we are facing drought again this year, so time to follow your lead and give them a try. Your statement about being a new gardener needs modification, you are a splendid example to those of us laboring ( joyfully) in the trenches for fifty plus years.
Wow Cindy, what an amazing job you have done creating your succulent garden. Lush, colorful, and textural - not words you would normally use for a succulent garden but you have succeeded on all. Your arrangements, garden art, and vision have created most interesting gardens that will surely weather the drought - doesn't seem you need a design class with so much talent. Succulents don't do to well here where I Iive as it is too wet so thanks for sharing your photos of these wonderful little plants.
What a wonderful surprise this morning to wake up with a tag on Facebook from Cherry knowing that my garden photos has been published on fine garden site, that’s a big deal to me…..and then when I came home from work just realized all these great and kind comments came with it which made me almost in tears….wow….I can’t tell you how I feel right now, but I think one reason is because I’m a little overwhelmed, in a good way, and the other reason is English is my second language, a lot of times I don’t really know how to write and what to write, but I do so appreciated with what everyone had to say and you all made my day, possibly made my year, and thank you!
Awww Cindy! You deserve all the accolades here. I can tell you, I have met many wonderful people from this blog which is Michelle's legacy. Gardeners are really the nicest people!
Cindy, congratulations on this fabulous article, and I loved being able to see your gardens. Your gardens certainly don't look like only 5 years experience gardening; they're wonderful! Thank you for allowing us to see your wonderful gardens and creativity. So nice to see succulents as they should be; planted in the ground!!
Suggest/highly recommend you send in your garden photos too Pat (especially that fantastic succulent container collection you have)...
Girl...you get the "Garden with Style" award! Love succulents and you have truly created a masterpiece with them. How can I see more of your garden pictures? Vikki in VA
Sharing a couple more of Cindy's fantastic garden and photography with you Vikki. Enjoy!
Cindy, you are so smart to embrace succulents when you live in an area that is experiencing drought, plus they are just so cool. I have fallen in love with Aeoniums but our area is not quite warm enough so I am quite envious that you can keep them outside year round. Don't undersell yourself as you seem to have a real knack for garden design. The best way is to plant what you like because then you will always appreciate it and not care what others think. Thanks for sharing.
Cindy, you have opened my eyes to succulents' many colors. I had no idea how brightly colorful they could be! Besides having so many interesting textures! I've only planted one succulent but see now what our garden has been missing.
Congratulations on your beautifully creative way to deal with drought. These photos will surely be widely published to give others ideas of how garden without water instead of covering their land with crushed rock or concrete.
It looks really nice. Good job. :)
Cindy what a wonderful your garden. My daughter lives in WC. When I visited I was enthralled while visiting Annies Annuals and the botanical Garden in WC. These places really opened my eyes to succulents. A little wet where I live, but I've been successful growing them in containers.
Aw...thank you Mary, how nice to hear that your daughter lives in WC! And yes, isn't Annie's Annuals a such beautiful and unique nursery or what, I was always enthralled every month when I visit there!
I love succulents. The various shades of green and burgundy blend so nicely, and with those red early tulips, it adds the finishing touch to the masterpiece. I have to dig up all my tender succulents (echiveria's etc. ) every fall and plant them up and try to keep them alive till next spring, which is usually after May 24th here in Ontario, Canada.
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