Succulents + Geodes Are the Hottest Houseplant Trend

Nashville designer Sara Fried demonstrates why a blend of catci, crystals and geodes makes for tabletop BFFs. Create your own arrangements for your next special event with these tips.

By: Felicia Feaster

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Photo By: Austin Gros Photography/Honey+Gunn Succulents

Set a Green Table

Agate, geodes and the fun addition of porcupine quills add an unexpected flourish to this tablescape featuring echeveria, tillandsia and cactus. "This is a simple design to try at home," says Sara Fried of Fete Nashville: Luxury Weddings, a wedding and event planning firm. "Unlike many high-end tablescapes, succulents and cacti can be a fool-proof design option. They arrive with personality. I love when a client chooses to about-face from the traditional and opt for succulent tablescapes," says Fried. "I’m beginning to see a shift with what was once a minimalist look into fully-designed, color-driven pieces packed with design elements that span geode, quills, feathers, stone, and wood. It’s striking in a way that floral often can’t provide."

Shine On

How gorgeous is this combo of copper pot, chunky purple amethyst, hawthoria 'Zebra' and sempervivum? To create this look, cut your hen and chicks (sempervivum) and position at an angle in the pot, filling your container with cactus potting mix. Rocks at the bottom of the container help with drainage. End the design with your amethyst and moss. Don't forget to soak your hen and chicks every two weeks and replace. Lightly water your hawthoria with about one tablespoon of water every two weeks. Keep in mind, says Fried, that you can make your succulent designs even more easy care by using succulent cuttings rather than planting them in containers. Cut where the root begins, says Fried and position in your container. Cuttings can be easily changed out. Just remember to soak your cuttings every two or three weeks in a bowl of water and they should last for months without roots. When you are done with your arrangement you can place the cutting in soil in a container or in your backyard and "watch it root and grow" says Fried.

Micro Landscapes

These long narrow containers are a great vehicle for this whimsical arrangement of cacti, hawthoria and agave. In addition to the porcupine quills, agate and crystals Nashville-based Honey + Gunn Succulents added preserved billy buttons. "We love a combination of two of these pieces side by side on a dining table," says Anne Gunnels of Honey + Gunn Succulents. "The look is stunning while offering a low design for cross-table conversation."

Bowl Me Over

An oversized shallow container is the perfect vessel for a combination of echeveria cuttings and aquarium pebbles. "This piece can go formal or informal," says Sara Fried of Fete Nashville. "The geode leans toward elegance while the concrete container is more farm table. I like the combination."

Twinning

These arrangements can be created by cutting succulents or planting living plants. If you choose the live option, fill the bottom of the container with a layer of rock. Fill with cactus potting mix and then add barrel cactus and hawthoria. White aquarium pebbles complete the look. "Purple agate, amethyst and porcupine quills add the sparkle and height," says Sara Fried. And don't forget to water: every two weeks about one tablespoon and keep your arrangement in a bright indoor spot.

Purple Whimsy

A mix of cactus and hawthoria works beautifully with this blend of quills, purple agate and amethyst in this delicate arrangement perfect for a place setting at a special event. "Children are drawn to quills and sparkling minerals" says Sara Fried of Fete Nashville. "Porcupine quills come in all sizes," says Fried, "go extra high for drama—or low for simple interest."

Perfect Place Setting

Adding your guests' names with a Sharpie to their succulent place setting make for a special party favor.

Earth Works

The luxe combo of succulents and geodes is the perfect combination of elegance and earthiness that works for a variety of home decor styles.

Keep Your Options Open

The fun of creative combos of succulents and crystals, geodes and agates is the infinite variety. Customize your favorites for an eclectic table setting, or as the perfect gift.

In the Pink

Cut echeveria is cut and placed on a graphic, alternating arrangement of pink sand and table salt in this fun succulent design. Anne Gunnels of Honey + Gunn Succulents recommends soaking the echeveria in a bowl of water every two weeks and then drying and replacing it on top of the sand.

Variety Is the Spice of Life

Soak tillandsia every two weeks in water and set back into place in your arrangement. In creating a tablescape you can vary combinations like this—of tillandsia, white aquarium pebble, amethyst and purple agate in a black container—with succulent and sand cubes to offer variations on shape and form.

Small Pot, Big Impact

Once you find your ideal vessel, supplies are easy to source. These hen and chick succulents are accessorized with aquarium pebbles and some blue agate. Beautiful calligraphy from @tennhensdesign using a black Sharpie customizes this charming place setting arrangement.

Plant Art

The hip black and white look of this barrel cactus cut and placed on alternating black sand and table salt is made even more dramatic with the addition of vertical porcupine quills. "Pour one mound of table salt across each side of the glass cube. Layer black fine grained sand on top. Repeat. Layer with white aquarium pebble before placing cactus," says Anne Gunnels of Honey + Gunn Succulents. The table design is by @pleasebeseatedrentals.

Mixed Metals

Creating these charming combos of geodes and succulents doesn't have to break the bank. Small succulents are expensive and bits of crystal, geodes and agate are easy to find. You can use inexpensive containers you already have on hand or that you find at big box stores. Here. hawthoria is combined with a variety of materials: black and white aquarium pebbles, preserved billy button, slices of blue agate, porcupine quills and tall black dried salt cedar (available in the floral department), amethyst and pink quartz. “Options are many here,” says Anne Gunnels of Nashville's Honey + Gunn Succulents. “Try amazonite, rough pink rose quartz crystal, and even desert rose stones for interest. Get height from willow, quills, and even peacock feather.”