Succulent Pumpkin Centerpiece

Using a variety of drieds and succulents you can create an easy centerpiece in minutes
Spraying the pumpkin with a clear lacquer adds a nice finish; I saw this in a restaurant

An easy centerpiece to whip up for your Thanksgiving table using a leftover pumpkin from Halloween can be done in half an hour. Drying flowers all summer long from my garden gave me ample stock to pick from and I had a bumper crop of dried sunflowers to use. The sliced dried oranges were dried in my dehydrator and left over from last year. As to succulents, I have a greenhouse full!

My greenhouse has lots of succulents that I am rooting and over-wintering

 

My stock of dried flowers

The green Jarradale pumpkin was my leftover from Halloween and I hot-glued some green moss on top to start. Continue to glue the largest items on the top around the stem. Here I used mini white pumpkins and dried sunflowers.

Start with your largest items first and hot glue them on top
After the largest items are glued, start with the dried flowers; here I used Cockscomb

Next, hot glue the dried flowers. Using the burgundy cockscomb created a nice contrast with the light colored pumpkins.

Adding sprays of dried Dusty Miller

Continue adding dried flowers to cover the top and sides of the pumpkin. One of my favorite foliage drieds is Dusty Miller (Senecio cineraria). Drying beautifully, it looks almost as good as fresh.

Adding dried oranges gives the pumpkin a dimensional effect

Adding dried blue hydrangea and some flexible metal fern fronds adds to the richness of the design. Be sure to go down the sides of the pumpkin to create a lush look. It is almost finished!

Add the succulents at the end with some quick dry glue (not hot glue)
Pumpkin with succulents

Dried blue salvia and succulents were added at the end and the last finishing touch was a piece of kiwi vine. Don’t hot glue your succulents! They will melt with the high heat. Use a quick drying glue. I use E6000 available at any craft store. Air plants are a great addition also but be sure not to hot glue these either. Fresh plant material doesn’t work well with hot glue.

This creation will last for weeks, even until Christmas. To make it last longer, don’t sit the pumpkin in the sun and the cooler the better for temperature.

For more pumpkin ideas, go to Succulent Pumpkins For the Fall, Pumpkin Treats-Decorating With Succulents, and Succulent Thanksgiving.

 

After picking my own sunflowers from a farm I enjoyed them fresh for a week and then hung them upside down in a dark place to dry
Dried Sunflowers

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