Sempervivum: Adding Life to Nostalgic Containers

I typically choose the container to fit the plant. This time, I have chosen the plant to fit the container.

I have a few teacups and saucers my late grandmother, beloved by all who knew her, cherished. The cups are refined and pretty, as she was. But they do not match other items in my home. While I can still taste the coffee-milk my grandmother let me sip from those cups, I never use them for the much stronger coffee I now brew each morning.

What to do? I decided to use those cherished cups to house precious plants. That way, I can see the cups rather than store them away, and their sight will call to mind beautiful memories.

I first held up Mexican Heather and wondered if it might grow well in such a vessel. Its roots could not fit in the petite cup before me. I needed a plant with shallow roots that could thrive in nothing more than a six-ounce container. I decided on Sempervivum, becoming especially fond of Sempervivum Montfort and Sempervivum Sir William Lawrence in the process, largely due to their foliage colors.

Commonly known as Hens and Chicks, these plants grow in minimal soil in tight quarters such as rock crevices. I knew the depth of a teacup would be more than adequate to allow Sempervivum plants to thrive.

I quickly discovered that ornamenting teacups with precious plants was not new. Right down to the plant type—the Sempervivum—this idea was shared by others. But I too wanted to pursue it.

I first wondered if placing a growing medium into a treasured piece of porcelain would somehow be disrespectful to those pieces my grandmother so loved. But when I weighed my options—honor those vessels by enhancing them with plants or keep the cups stored away—this project began to feel "right".

Sempervivum plants grow as geometric rosettes that show no stems, unless they are trailing off as runners. Looking as though they have been around since prehistory, the rosettes sit directly on their growing medium, and that medium need not be rich. Resilient, these plants seem to need nothing but sun and minimal water to thrive—semper vivum, “always alive”.

In an indoor application, I knew good drainage would be key to keeping the tough little rosettes happy. Because I keep a close eye on my houseplants, I did not amend my cups in any way. I am sure others might use a special bit on a small drill to create a drainage hole in the base of each cup. But I knew this might result in breakage. I could not take that chance. Instead, I will monitor my plants. When the soil under my Hens and Chicks dries out, I will add a touch of water.

I lined each cup with a small piece of landscape fabric and added pebbles. I introduced those to each cup carefully, using the fabric to avoid scratching the cups. Atop that drainage bed, I added soil dug from my garden, mixed with the potting material in which each Sempervivum was shipped to me.

With the plants' great variety in size and color, I had many options. A single Sempervivum Tectorum Oddity could span the diameter of a cup. Sempervivum Chick Charms® Gold Nugget could also fill a cup nicely and glow in golden tones as it does so, provided it has been kept cool enough to allow this color to develop. (The colors of these plants, in general, become more vibrant in cooler temperatures.) Sempervivum Montfort and Sempervivum Sir William Lawrence are highlighted in maroon, echoing the color of a teacup or two from my collection. And with the plants I used, runners growing off larger rosettes were fashioned into convincing “teabags”.

I used different varieties in different cups and was pleased with the results. I think my grandmother would be pleased, too.

Some gardening projects pose a challenge; some seem creative and unique; some result in a planting display that requires significant ongoing care. This project was none of those things. Instead, it was simple and smooth. But so was that coffee-milk that tasted so good on the mornings I would visit my grandmother, who would prepare it just right. I have a feeling I will be thinking back to those mornings more and more, as my gaze falls on those sweet planter cups, now brimming with life, honored, and in full view.