Here are just a few of my cacti and succulents in my conservatory ready for their annual trip to Sturton. The one nearest the camera is an aloe vera that has just been repotted and consequently looks quite architectural with the granite chippings around the base. I find these 'mulches' show off the plants to best effect.
The only thing I do to them really is give them a watering once a week during the summer with a solution of special cacti feed. During the winter they are only watered once every month if that. Some of the succulent leaved plants need a tidy every now and then and they get repotted maybe every couple of years, very often into a same size pot but after having the roots 'teased' and trimmed and new compost added. I make my own 'crunchy' mix with 50% sieved soil and 50% washed builders sand. You need to keep a close eye out for mealy bugs and I find a spray of neat whisky kills them.
When displaying cacti just give the pot a wipe and give them a spray of luke warm water to freshen up their appearance. Make sure any gravel or stone mulches are neatly arranged and that no soil is showing.
Last night was very cold but not quite cold enough for a frost and so the dahlias have survived. Hopefully, if won't get that bad before Sturton as I have quite a few decent blooms starting to form and always enjoy the challenge of transporting them so far and trying to stage them at their best. This may mean cutting some of them 3 or 4 days before the show and keeping them in my darkened garage.
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