A Wall Of Succulents

Mandy Crooks’s terraced garden is a kaleidoscope of colours, shapes and textures.

- Marie Esterhuyse

If you had an unsightly embankment overgrown with ivy behind your house, what would you do?

Take a leaf from Mandy Crooks’s book: 18 months ago, she decided to remove the bothersome plants and replace them with a swathe of succulents.

“The embankment runs along the length of the house at the back and is visible from the bedrooms as well as the kitchen,” says Mandy. “Now that it is terraced, the garden looks like a 6m-tall living wall. It’s a pleasure to look at.”

Mandy says there were practical as well as visual reasons why she decided on a succulent garden for the embankment. “They are no fuss, low-maintenance plants; they’re tough and hardy and can be left to their own devices. And, of course, they look gorgeous,” she says.

“Succulents are beautiful all year round, not just when they’re in flower. Their foliage creates great contrasting shapes in the garden and I love their colours which change throughout the seasons.

“Although our climate is not ideal for succulents, they are thriving. We get more rain than they need and occasionally get hail but as long as they have good drainage, they do very well. And the winter temperatures bring out their beautiful colours.”