Spring has sprung

As confusing as the weather may be (we've been having scattered showers and yesterday felt like LA winter!), it is spring and spring brings lush gardens and pretty things! A couple weekends ago, I decided to do some intense balcony garden upkeep and figure out why the succulents weren't looking too hot. Turns out they were getting overcrowded, roots were growing like crazy, and they were shedding, desperately needing some TLC.

I never asked for them...they were just kind of forced upon me when my mom found out I was gardening on my balcony. She figured giving me plants that are hard to kill would be the best way to go. I still managed to kill one of the aloe vera plants she gave me, though. These succulents, however, have proven to be very sturdy, and seem to be the gifts that keep on giving!

My mom told me she actually stole her first one from the Golden Gate Park in San Fran many, many years ago. Shhh. They've continued to grow and grow since! See, the way they continue their legacy is by growing little offsets down by their roots, which is where these guys above came from! They were the tiny cute guys I found when I de-potted an entire pot of big ones. Upon discovering them, I decided to put the cute ones in their own pots 1) for crowd control and 2) to give as gifts! This particular one went with Tom to work and has been named Herbert Hoover.

After some confusion and a little investigating, I found out they are a type of echeveria. I can't figure out if they are echeveria secunda or imbricata. I am leaning towards the former. At first I thought they were a type of aeonium. Sorry if that offends any succulent enthusiasts out there!