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Christopher Griffin, the Brooklyn-based botanical expert also known as Plant Kween, has made it their mission to help those who are less gifted in the gardening department, even if what you need assistance with is as seemingly simple as keeping a succulent alive. Griffin is seeing aspiring green thumbs shift away from fussy varieties like the Boston fern and gravitate toward low-maintenance buds that “will help them hone in on the process, skills, and adventure of indoor gardening,” they share. Still, there is more to helping your spiral aloe or bunny ears cactus thrive than meets the eye.
Luckily, Griffin is extending their prowess to the masses through a partnership with 1-800-Flowers.com. For a limited time, the collaboration provides customers with a selection of green offerings curated by Griffin, a succulent garden workshop, and plenty of resources to guide the growth journey. They handpicked an assortment of 15 green and blooming choices that largely appeal to novice plant parents after noticing a downward trend in the popularity of difficult-to-care choices. In this collection, some of those include the marble queen pothos, ZZ plant, and snake plant. And while Griffin says the fiddle-leaf fig can be a diva, it’s still a species many gravitate toward, so it made the cut, too.
For true beginners, the Plant Kween Succulent Garden on-demand workshop is the best place to start. For $65, you’ll learn step by step how to design a potted setup from Griffin and receive a kit with five various succulents, a terracotta planter, and a soil mix included. But in case you can’t be there for the streaming, we asked Griffin to share a few of their top care tips here.
- On sunlight: Succulents should get at least six hours of sunlight per day. However, do be mindful of potential sunburn, as too many rays can scorch some species.
- On moisture: Thick, sap-filled leaves allow succulents to retain water more effectively than plants with thin leaves. I recommend watering every 10 to 14 days in the warmer months and every 21 to 30 days in colder months.
- On soil: Well drained and aerated is the way to go! Anything from coconut coir soil to a standard potting mix with some added perlite and fir bark is the perfect scene for that kween.