How to make a Hen-and-Chicks Pot Garden

Hen-and-Chicks pot garden

clay pot

Hen-and-chicks (sempervivum)

preparing the pot

about one inch of gravel

two parts sand to one part soil

finished pot garden

Hen-and-chick plant (Sempervivum) is fun and easy to grow.  The hen is the center rosette and the chicks are offshoots that sprout from the base.  Houseleek is another name for this native of Europe and Africa.  Sempervivum is a succulent and stores water in its leaves.  In times past, hen-and-chicks provided natural protection from fire and lightening when planted on the thatched roofs of medieval Europe.   Today, Sempervivum is planted as a protective firebreak in western landscape borders and for living green roofs.  Fancy hen- and-chick pot gardens are sold in garden centers for over $100.00, but you can make one yourself for less than half that!

Buy an unglazed clay pot at your garden center.  Plastic and glazed pots are nonporous and do not breath when soaked.  Excess moisture is death to a succulent plant like hen-and-chicks.  The featured pot was found in the ½ off bin because it had been lightly used in the garden center and had a little dirt in it.  Look for a deal!  An old colander would work very well too for an inexpensive hen-and-chick pot garden.

Buy your plants.  Hardy in USDA gardening zones 3-9, they are available in color variations of red, burgundy, yellow, and green.  Consider the size of your pot when choosing your plants, three or five plants will create a more pleasing design than an even number.  They will soon sprout chicks, so leave a little room for growth.  The featured plants cost  $5.00 – $7.00 each.




Put a small piece of window screen on the bottom of the pot.  This will keep your soil mix from leaching out the bottom.






Add about 1 inch of gravel or aggregate stones to the bottom of the pot.  This promotes quick drainage if the pot gets a soaking.  I used a 5 # bag purchased from a craft store for about $5.00. Set aside about one quarter of the gravel for decorating the top.


Sempervivum plants grow best in poor, sandy, well-drained soil.  Mix up one part standard potting soil with two parts sand.  This project used previously purchased play sand scooped from the kid’s sandbox. 



Fill your pot ½ full with the soil mix.


Tip out your plants and place on top of the soil.







Mix up another batch of soil and sand.  Gently scoop around the plants in the pot and continue until full.  





This 12” x 6” pot needed about six 4” pot size scoops of sand and 3 scoops of potting soil to finish the project.








Sprinkle some decorative aquarium gravel on the top for a little sparkle.  The featured garden used about one-half a 2# bag purchased from an aquarium store sale bin for $3.49. You can also use decorative glass bits sold by the scoop in garden centers.


Add the rest of the bag of aggregate stones to the top. This will promote rooting of the offshoots and lend a natural look to the pot garden.

Do NOT water as the soil was likely saturated when purchased from the garden center.  Hen and chick plants prefer to be on the drier side.  Move the pot if in a sprinkler path on watering day and place under an eave during continuous rainy weather.  Lightly water only if the leaves seem shrunken and flat, a very rare occurrence!

Tips:
Place your pot in the proper location.  Hen and chicks is a succulent, not a cactus; full sun can burn them in zones 5-9.  While they need several hours of sunlight for healthy growth, consider placing them in a semi-shaded location during the hottest part of the day.   

Do not water unless the leaves become wilted. Nature will likely provide the required moisture.

Hen and chicks can be planted in the ground in USDA gardening zones 3 – 9.  They grow best in dry, rocky or alpine soils. Place under an eave, on a hill in gravelly spots or on a stone wall for good drainage.

Bring your pot garden indoors for winter in frost zones.  Place by your sunniest window in a cool location and do not water for a month or two to allow the plants to rest. Water only when the leaves begin to wilt or shrivel. 

“Chicks” can fill the pot to overflowing, divide as needed and start new potted gardens for gifts or club projects.

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All content and images original works of kittycooks. Copyright 2009