Sometimes sad San Francisco succulents

Last Sunday my wife and I visited our friend Tim in San Francisco. An accomplished painter, he had an open studio at a space he shares with a few other artists. His studio is a 10-minute walk from the BART station at 24th and Mission. It’s just a few blocks, and yet I saw many succulents in front of apartments, along the sidewalk, in median strips.

San Francisco isn’t exactly the kind of climate most succulents thrive in. Typically, temperatures are in the 60s, often lower. Mild for sure, and good enough for a lot of temperate plants, but too cool for many succulents to thrive. But because they need so little, especially regular watering, many city dwellers gravitate towards them.

Of course I’m anthropomorphizing, but some of the succulents I saw on the short walk to our friend’s studio looked like they would rather be someplace else. Still, they’re hanging on, providing pops of green where most other plants would struggle.

Potted aloes with a few feet of trunk...

...those aren’t common sights in SF

Aeoniums appear to be the most common streetside succulents in SF

These don’t seem to get much water over the summer, but they should plump up when the rain returns in the fall

Jade plant (Crassula ovata) in a garbage can. That’s a metaphor for something...

Quite a fancy urn for this agave

In contrast, these succulents don’t look so hot

I have no idea who planted these aloes, aeoniums, and agaves in the median strip. I doubt it was done by the city of SF, so maybe a guerrilla gardening effort?

Good-looking Agave attenuata

These are the kinds of massive aeonium rosettes I expect to see in SF. More than any other succulent, aeoniums thrive in SF’s mild climate. It looks like a big rosette got snapped off. Maybe by a passer-by?

I have no idea which agave this is (maybe even a mangave?), but it looks rough. Mealybugs don’t help.

I have a feeling this is the extent of gardening for many apartment dwellers. Yeah, pretty soul-sucking.

As sad as some of the other succulents were, this aloe looked downright vigorous. Maybe because some caring soul gives it regular water? The two dog poop bags cracked me up.

Another happy Agave attenuata underplanted with a variegated plectranthus, also looking happy. Agave attenuata thrives in cooler coastal climates, like Santa Barbara and the Bay Area. If I lived there, I wouldn’t even bother with other succulents that want more heat, like aloes.

Speaking of thriving: This massive Yucca elephantipes has clearly found its happy spot.

I have no idea how old it is...

...but likely it’s been here for decades

I’ve never lived in a densely populated urban area like San Francisco, but the thought of gardening in this kind of environment is depressing to me. No offense to anybody, just my personal feelings.

Ending on a positive note: This Echeveria agavoides ‘Lipstick’ is about as perfect as it gets. Tim found it abandoned on the sidewalk and nursed it back to health. In addition to being an artist, he also has quite a green thumb.

Tim’s Echeveria agavoides ‘Lipstick’

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