I’ve never had much luck with keeping my succulents alive… Actually, I think I’ve managed to kill every succulent plant to make it into my home. Despite this, I really wanted to make this succulent cinderella pumpkin DIY. It’s a popular and lovely take on a fall centerpiece, so I tried to educate myself a bit more about succulents. If you’re a beginner with succulents like me, you’ll find some helpful pointers that I’ve gathered in the instructions below.

Before we start this DIY, I learned you should allow your succulents to callus before assembling the centerpiece. What this means is that after you cut the succulents from their roots, give them a couple days for the ends to dry on a paper towel. If you skip this step, it’s more likely that the succulents will rot because they will be absorbing too much water. If you can’t wait and need to assemble right away, wait at least a week before watering (watering instructions are at the bottom of the post).

On to the supplies need. First, a cinderella pumpkin that is either flat or concave at the top, multiple succulents (I used a lot of rosette shapes but would love to do this with a variety of shapes and colors, too), tacky glue and sphagnum moss. Trim the pumpkin stem a bit with pruning shears, I recommend leaving some stem in tact because it helps anchor the succulents.

Put a generous amount of tacky glue on the top of your pumpkin, then start placing the moss all around it. I did mine piece by piece. FYI this makes a mess, so work on a surface that you can easily clean. Once you’re done with the moss, you can begin adding your succulents.

Start with your largest ones, add glue to their stems and secure them into the moss (the roots will grow through the glue!). Fill in around your larger succulents with the smaller ones until you are finished.

Place the centerpiece in a spot with adequate sunlight. Since we aren’t carving the pumpkin it has a much longer lifespan, probably two months (that’s assuming I can keep my succulents alive). This is a lot longer than the equally pretty floral pumpkin centerpiece I made last year (you can see that one here). Once your pumpkin starts to deteriorate, you can remove your succulents and replant them in pots with good drainage, or outside if your climate allows.

As for watering, use a spray bottle and place the nozzle close to the moss and in between the succulents to lightly mist and wet the moss. Make sure you wait until your glue is dried, at least 24 hours. Then water it whenever you notice the moss is completely dried out again. If you used a very deep pumpkin, tilt it so any excess water spills out. I love that this cinderella pumpkin centerpiece can last well into Thanksgiving!

Products Used to Make Succulent Cinderella Pumpkin:

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