Looking to spice up your living space with a little desert magic? Good news: you don’t have to shovel a pile of sand onto your sofa to get that vibe! A DIY cactus bowl is a fantastic way to create a decorative focal point for your coffee table or windowsill, letting your favorite prickly plants really take center stage.
Creating Your Cactus Bowl: What You’ll Need
If you’re ready to put together a little community of succulents for that special desert flair, gather up these supplies:
- A variety of compact-growing cactus species
- A planter or bowl (at least 12 inches in diameter)
- Succulent or cactus potting mix
- Expanded clay pebbles or Seramis for drainage
- Lime-free quartz sand
- Decorative touches: think stones, colored sand, or even tiny figurines
- Heavy-duty, thorn-proof gardening gloves
Pro tip for prep: To keep your plants healthy, it’s a great idea to sterilize your soil. Just pop it in an oven-safe dish at 300°F (150°C) for about 30 minutes. You should also give your bowl and any decorative stones a good scrub with hot water and a quick disinfectant to kill off any lingering germs or pests.
Step-by-Step Planting Guide
To keep your cacti happy, we’re going to layer the substrate. This mimics a natural desert floor and ensures your succulents have the perfect environment to thrive. Here’s how to get planting:
- Start with a layer of clay pebbles or Seramis (about an inch deep) at the bottom of the bowl for drainage.
- Spread your sterilized, cooled cactus soil over the drainage layer.
- Put on those thorn-proof gloves before carefully removing the cacti from their nursery pots.
- Arrange your succulents in the bowl, making sure to keep them at the same depth they were in their original pots.
- Use a spoon to gently press the soil down around the cactus root balls.
- Finish it off by sprinkling a layer of quartz sand around the plants.
Extra Tip: If you snip just a tiny corner off the bag of quartz sand, you can pour it with way more precision!
The Finishing Touches: Decorating Your Desert
Now for the fun part! You can tuck stones of various sizes between your cacti to give it a rugged look. Small figurines are also a great way to add some personality to your arrangement—just nestle them into the sand or use a tiny drop of superglue to secure them to a decorative rock.
For the aftercare, give your cacti a light misting with lime-free water. Once your exotic new roommates have had about a week to settle into their new home, you can give them their first real watering.
