Wikipedia says that succulents are water-retaining plants adapted to arid climates or soil conditions. We say they’re the greatest eye candy since Ryan Gosling. OK, that’s pushing it. But, really, could there be an easier way to add a touch of graphic, quirky charm to any space?
Succulents and their most notable family member, the cactus, have been a fixture on the design circuit for as long as the Eames Eiffel Chair has been around. Winning hearts and minds of designers the world over, the succulent embodies the Modernist movement’s overarching belief that form follows function. A timeless testament to the lasting value of the organic form stripped of all unnecessary ornament, here’s our guide to living with the best looking, utilitarian plants in the world.
Let us know in the comments what has you Yelping your friendly neighborhood garden center.
Image credit: Elly Yap
Image credit: Richard Powers for Interiors Magazine
Image credit: Richard Powers for Interiors Magazine
Image credit: Missoni Home Cactus Garden via designboom
Image credit: Stephen Eichhorn, “Nine (IV)”, 2010
Image credit: Steve Soria’s living room by Nancy Neil via Design Sponge
Image credit: Shannon Gerard, Plants You Can’t Kill
Image credit: Maurizio Zucchi’s living room for IDEAT Magazine via the189
Image credit: Katie Goldman MacDonald, Kiwi Terrarium
Image credit: Josh and Diana Perrin’s bedroom by Josh Perrin via Design Sponge
Image credit: Andrea Ferrari, Casa Talia in Modica, Sicily
Image credit: Johanne Burke’s Brooklyn aloe vera by Grace Villamil via Freunde von Freunden
Image credit: Steve Soria’s fireplace by Nancy Neil via Design Sponge
Image credit: Felipe Morozini’s living room by Fran Parente via Freunde von Freunden
Image credit: Grow your own cacti collection in glow-in-the-dark pods by Nexus Gadgets
Image credit: Elly Yap
Image credit: Emma Cooper
Image credit: designboom
Image credit: Eric Owen Moss, Potted Cactus Canopy
Image credit: Nick DeWolf Photo Archive, Aspen Wintersköl Parade, 1981