If you’ve ever dreamed of creating a stunning garden that practically takes care of itself, succulent garden plants might be exactly what you need. These remarkable plants have captured the hearts of gardeners worldwide, and for good reason. With their unique shapes, vibrant colors, and incredible resilience, succulents offer beauty without the constant watering, pruning, and fussing that traditional garden plants often require.
Whether you’re a complete beginner who’s never planted anything before or an experienced gardener looking to diversify your outdoor space, succulents provide an accessible entry point into gardening. They thrive in conditions where other plants would struggle, making them perfect for hot climates, rocky soil, or areas with water restrictions. Beyond their practical benefits, these plants bring architectural interest and texture to any garden design, creating visual focal points that last throughout the year.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the top five succulent varieties that will transform your garden into a low-maintenance oasis. You’ll learn not just which plants to choose, but also how to care for them, where to plant them, and what makes each one special. By the end of this article, you’ll have all the knowledge you need to start your own thriving succulent garden.
Why Choose Succulents for Your Garden?
Before we dive into our top five picks, let’s understand what makes succulent plants such exceptional choices for outdoor gardens.
Water-Wise Gardening Made Easy
Succulents are masters of water conservation. Their thick, fleshy leaves and stems store water for extended periods, allowing them to survive weeks or even months without rainfall. In an era where water conservation is increasingly important, these plants let you maintain a beautiful garden while significantly reducing water consumption. Many communities facing drought conditions have turned to succulent landscaping as an environmentally responsible alternative to thirsty lawns and traditional flower beds.
Incredibly Forgiving for Beginners
One of the biggest challenges new gardeners face is learning the delicate balance of plant care. Too much water? Root rot. Too little? Wilting and death. Succulents remove much of this guesswork. They actually prefer being underwatered to overwatered, which means you can travel for weeks without worrying about your garden dying in your absence. This forgiving nature makes them perfect for busy professionals, frequent travelers, or anyone who wants a beautiful garden without daily maintenance.
Year-Round Visual Interest
Unlike many flowering plants that bloom for just a few weeks, succulent garden plants provide consistent visual appeal throughout all seasons. Their sculptural forms, varied textures, and diverse color palettes—ranging from silvery blues and deep purples to bright greens and sunset oranges—create a living art installation in your outdoor space. Some varieties even change colors with the seasons or produce stunning blooms as a bonus to their already attractive foliage.
Versatility in Garden Design
Succulents adapt to virtually any garden style. Create a modern, minimalist landscape with geometric arrangements of architectural varieties. Design a whimsical rock garden that looks like something from a fairy tale. Build a Mediterranean-inspired courtyard or a desert zen space. The versatility of these plants means they work equally well in formal and informal settings, contemporary and traditional designs.
Top 5 Succulent Plants for Your Garden
Now let’s explore the five best succulent varieties that will elevate your outdoor space. Each of these plants brings unique characteristics and benefits to your garden.
1. Echeveria: The Rose-Shaped Beauty
Echeverias are often called the “roses of the succulent world,” and one look at their perfectly symmetrical rosettes explains why. These stunning plants form tight spirals of plump leaves that look almost too perfect to be real.
Why Echeveria Deserves a Spot in Your Garden
Echeverias come in an astonishing array of colors and sizes. You’ll find varieties with powdery blue-green leaves, deep purple tones, pink-edged foliage, and even some with striking red tips. The larger varieties can grow to the size of dinner plates, while miniature types stay compact at just a few inches across. This diversity means you can create entire garden beds using nothing but different Echeveria varieties and still achieve incredible visual variety.
What makes these succulent garden plants particularly special is their tendency to produce tall flower stalks in spring and summer. These stalks can reach up to two feet high, topped with clusters of bell-shaped blooms in shades of coral, pink, yellow, or red. The flowers attract hummingbirds and beneficial pollinators, adding movement and life to your garden.
Growing Conditions and Care Tips
Echeverias thrive in bright, indirect sunlight to partial shade. While they can handle full sun in cooler climates, intense afternoon sun in hot regions may scorch their leaves or fade their beautiful colors. Plant them in well-draining soil—a cactus and succulent mix works perfectly. If your garden has heavy clay soil, amend it with pumice, perlite, or coarse sand to improve drainage.
Water your Echeverias deeply but infrequently. During the growing season (spring and summer), water when the soil has completely dried out, usually every one to two weeks depending on your climate. In winter, reduce watering to once a month or less. The key is to avoid letting water sit in the rosette center, as this can lead to rot. Water at the base of the plant rather than from above.
Design Ideas for Your Garden
Echeverias work beautifully as border plants along pathways or at the front of garden beds where their intricate patterns can be appreciated up close. They’re also perfect for rock gardens, where you can nestle them between stones to create naturalistic arrangements. For a dramatic effect, plant several large varieties together in groups of three or five, using odd numbers for a more organic, visually pleasing composition.
Consider pairing different colored Echeverias together to create living color gradients. Start with pale blue-green varieties on one end and transition through lavender and purple tones to deep burgundy. This ombre effect creates sophisticated visual flow in your garden design.
2. Sedum (Stonecrop): The Versatile Ground Cover
If you need a hardworking succulent that can fill large areas, handle foot traffic, and look gorgeous while doing it, Sedum is your answer. This diverse genus includes hundreds of varieties, from low-growing ground covers to upright border plants.
The Many Faces of Sedum
Sedum varieties range dramatically in appearance. Creeping types like Sedum acre (commonly called goldmoss stonecrop) form dense mats of tiny leaves that hug the ground, perfect for filling gaps between stepping stones or cascading over walls. Upright varieties like Sedum spectabile (autumn joy) grow to knee height and produce large, showy flower clusters that butterflies absolutely adore.
The foliage itself offers tremendous variety. You’ll find sedums with round, bean-like leaves, needle-shaped foliage, and everything in between. Colors range from bright chartreuse and emerald green to bronzy reds and silvery grays. Many varieties feature multiple colors on a single leaf, with edges or tips in contrasting shades.
Why Gardeners Love Sedum
Sedum stands out among succulent garden plants for its exceptional cold hardiness. While many succulents struggle in freezing temperatures, numerous Sedum varieties can survive winters in zones as cold as zone 3, where temperatures drop to minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit. This makes them accessible to gardeners in regions where most succulents simply won’t survive outdoors year-round.
Another advantage is their tolerance for various soil conditions. While Sedums prefer well-draining soil like all succulents, they’re more forgiving of less-than-ideal conditions than most. They can handle occasional moisture and adapt to different soil types, though they still perform best when drainage is adequate.
Practical Care and Maintenance
Plant Sedum in full sun for the best color and most compact growth. Most varieties can tolerate partial shade, though they may become leggy and their colors may be less intense. Space plants according to their mature size, keeping in mind that ground-cover types will spread to fill the area over time.
Watering needs are minimal once established. In most climates, natural rainfall provides sufficient moisture. During extended dry spells, water deeply every two to three weeks. Overwatering causes more problems than underwatering with Sedum, so when in doubt, wait another few days.
One of the best features of Sedum is how easy it is to propagate. Simply break off a stem, let the cut end dry for a day or two, then stick it in soil. Within weeks, you’ll have a new plant. This makes it incredibly affordable to fill large areas—buy a few starter plants and multiply them yourself.
Creative Garden Applications
Use low-growing Sedum varieties to create living mulch under taller succulents or drought-tolerant perennials. This living ground cover suppresses weeds while adding color and texture. Plant them in the cracks of stone walls or between pavers for a cottage-garden feel that softens hard landscaping.
For rooftop gardens or green roofs, Sedum is often the go-to choice. Its shallow root system, drought tolerance, and ability to withstand harsh conditions make it ideal for these challenging environments. Many cities now incorporate Sedum-planted green roofs into their sustainable building designs.
3. Agave: The Dramatic Architectural Statement
When you want to make a bold statement in your garden, nothing compares to the architectural drama of Agave. These striking succulents serve as natural sculptures, drawing the eye and commanding attention.
Understanding Agave’s Appeal
Agaves range from compact varieties that fit in a large pot to massive specimens that can reach six feet across. Their distinctive rosette form features thick, pointed leaves arranged in perfect symmetry. Many varieties have decorative elements like contrasting edge colors, striking stripes running the length of each leaf, or interesting teeth along the margins.
The color palette of Agave varieties is equally impressive. You’ll find species in blue-gray, silvery white, deep green, and even variegated types with cream or yellow stripes. Some varieties, like the popular Agave ‘Blue Glow’, feature translucent leaf edges that literally glow when backlit by the sun, creating magical effects in morning or evening light.
Growing Agave Successfully
Agaves are true sun lovers. Plant them in the brightest, hottest spot in your garden where other plants struggle. They thrive in full, intense sunlight and actually develop their best form and color under these conditions. In terms of soil, excellent drainage is absolutely critical. If water sits around the roots, rot will quickly set in. Plant in raised beds, on slopes, or in heavily amended soil with plenty of grit.
These succulent garden plants are incredibly drought-tolerant once established. In fact, mature Agaves can survive entirely on natural rainfall in many climates. During the first year after planting, water every two to three weeks to help establish roots. After that, water monthly during the hottest part of summer and not at all during cooler months.
Important Considerations
Before planting Agave, consider their sharp leaf tips and often spiny edges. Place them away from pathways, play areas, or anywhere people might accidentally brush against them. You can carefully trim the sharp terminal spine at the end of each leaf with pruning shears if needed, though this does alter their natural appearance.
Also be aware that most Agave varieties are monocarpic, meaning they bloom once at the end of their life cycle (which can be 10 to 30 years) and then die. However, they typically produce offsets (called pups) around their base before blooming, ensuring you’ll have replacement plants. When an Agave sends up its massive flower spike—sometimes reaching 20 feet tall—it’s quite a spectacle to witness.
Design Strategies
Use Agaves as focal points in your garden design. Plant a single large specimen in a prominent location and build your surrounding landscape around it. Their sculptural form provides structure and serves as a strong visual anchor.
Agaves also work beautifully in groups of varying sizes. Plant a large mother plant with smaller varieties or offsets surrounding it to create a cohesive grouping with varied scale. This approach looks particularly striking in modern, minimalist landscapes.
For dramatic container displays, plant Agaves in large, shallow bowls or contemporary concrete planters. Their architectural form is further emphasized when elevated in a container, making them living art pieces for patios, pool areas, or entryways.
4. Aloe Vera: The Practical Beauty
Aloe vera deserves a place in every garden not just for its attractive appearance, but also for its practical medicinal properties. This familiar succulent combines ornamental value with functional benefits.
More Than Just a Medicinal Plant
While Aloe vera is famous for treating minor burns and skin irritations, it’s also a genuinely attractive garden plant. The thick, lance-shaped leaves grow in rosettes that can reach two feet across. The leaves feature subtle white spotting and small teeth along their edges, giving them visual interest beyond their basic form.
In spring, established Aloe vera plants send up tall spikes topped with tubular flowers in shades of yellow, orange, or coral. These flowers attract hummingbirds and provide a vertical element that contrasts nicely with the horizontal spread of the rosettes.
Cultivating Healthy Aloe Vera
Aloe vera prefers bright light but appreciates some afternoon shade in extremely hot climates. Too much intense sun can cause the leaves to turn reddish-brown, while too little light results in weak, pale growth. Find a spot with morning sun and filtered afternoon light for optimal results.
Plant in well-draining succulent soil, ensuring the base of the plant sits slightly above ground level to prevent water from pooling around the stem. This helps prevent rot, which is the most common problem with Aloe vera.
Water thoroughly when the soil is completely dry, approximately every two to three weeks during active growth. In winter, reduce watering significantly—once a month or even less is usually sufficient. Aloe vera will tolerate underwatering far better than overwatering.
Harvesting and Using Your Aloe
One of the joys of growing Aloe vera is having fresh gel available whenever you need it. To harvest, simply cut off a mature outer leaf near the base using a clean, sharp knife. Slice the leaf lengthwise and scoop out the clear gel inside. Use it immediately on minor burns, sunburns, or dry skin.
The plant quickly seals the cut and continues growing without issue. Avoid removing more than one or two leaves at a time, and always take outer leaves rather than inner ones to maintain the plant’s appearance and vigor.
Garden Design with Aloe Vera
These succulent garden plants work well in Mediterranean-style gardens alongside other drought-tolerant plants like lavender, rosemary, and olive trees. Their soft blue-green color complements the silvery foliage common in these garden styles.
Plant Aloe vera in groups for greater visual impact rather than spacing them out individually. A cluster of three to five plants creates a more substantial presence than a single specimen. You can also combine different Aloe species (there are hundreds beyond Aloe vera) to create an Aloe-focused garden bed with varied leaf shapes, sizes, and colors.
In smaller gardens or courtyards, Aloe vera works beautifully in large terracotta pots. The classic combination of succulent and clay creates a timeless look that fits any garden style from rustic to contemporary.
5. Sempervivum (Hens and Chicks): The Cold-Hardy Champion
If you live in a climate with cold winters and thought outdoor succulent gardening wasn’t for you, Sempervivum will change your mind. These incredibly hardy plants thrive where most succulents would freeze solid.
What Makes Sempervivum Special
Sempervivum, commonly called hens and chicks due to their growth habit of producing many small offsets around a central rosette, are among the most cold-tolerant succulents available. They survive freezing temperatures, snow, and ice without protection, making them accessible to gardeners in zones 3 through 8.
The variety within this genus is staggering. You’ll find rosettes in every shade of green, red, purple, and bronze. Some varieties are fuzzy with fine hairs covering their leaves, giving them a cobweb appearance. Others have smooth, glossy leaves with pointed tips. Sizes range from tiny rosettes less than an inch across to larger varieties spanning several inches.
One of the most enchanting characteristics of Sempervivum is their color-changing ability. Many varieties shift colors dramatically with the seasons. A plant that’s soft green in summer might transform to deep burgundy in fall and winter as temperatures drop. This seasonal transformation provides year-round interest.
Growing Sempervivum Successfully
These succulents prefer full sun but tolerate partial shade better than most other succulent garden plants. In fact, in extremely hot climates, some afternoon shade prevents stress and keeps colors from fading.
The soil requirements are minimal—Sempervivum can grow in the poorest, rockiest soil as long as drainage is adequate. In fact, they often perform better in lean soil than in rich, amended garden beds. This makes them perfect for areas where nothing else seems to thrive.
Watering needs are minimal. Once established, natural rainfall is usually sufficient in most climates. During extended droughts, water every two to three weeks. In winter, no supplemental water is needed at all—these plants go dormant and require nothing from you during cold months.
The Fascinating Life Cycle
Sempervivum rosettes are monocarpic, meaning each rosette blooms once and then dies. However, this isn’t cause for concern. Before blooming (which usually happens when a rosette is three to four years old), it produces many offsets that take its place. The common name “hens and chicks” refers to this growth pattern—the “hen” (mother plant) produces “chicks” (babies) that cluster around her.
When a rosette sends up a flower stalk, it’s quite a show. The stalk emerges from the rosette center and grows to several inches tall, topped with star-shaped flowers in pink, red, white, or yellow. After flowering and setting seed, the rosette dies, but by then, multiple offsets have already taken its place, ensuring your colony continues to expand.
Creative Design Ideas
Sempervivum’s small size and spreading habit make them perfect for rock gardens and crevice planting. Tuck them between stones in walls, plant them in the gaps of stone steps, or create a tapestry effect by planting multiple varieties together in a shallow bed.
These plants also work wonderfully in living wreaths, vertical gardens, and succulent frames. Their hardiness means these displays can remain outdoors year-round in many climates, unlike arrangements made with more tender succulents.
For a low-maintenance alternative to traditional ground covers, plant Sempervivum en masse. They spread slowly but steadily, eventually forming a weed-suppressing mat of varied colors and textures. This approach works particularly well on slopes or in areas where mowing is difficult or impossible.
General Care Tips for All Succulent Garden Plants
While each succulent variety has specific needs, these general guidelines will help ensure success with any of the plants we’ve discussed.
Soil and Drainage Essentials
The single most important factor in succulent health is drainage. In their native habitats, most succulents grow in rocky, sandy soil where water drains away immediately. Replicating these conditions is crucial for success.
Create an ideal succulent planting mix by combining regular potting soil with coarse materials. Add equal parts pumice, perlite, or coarse sand to standard potting mix. For in-ground planting, if your soil is heavy clay, either build raised beds filled with well-draining mix or amend your existing soil heavily with grit.
Test your drainage by digging a hole, filling it with water, and observing how quickly it drains. If water remains after 30 minutes, your drainage needs improvement.
Watering Wisdom
More succulents die from overwatering than any other cause. These plants evolved to handle drought, not constant moisture. When you water, soak the soil thoroughly so water runs out the bottom (or drains deep into the ground for in-ground plantings), then let the soil dry completely before watering again.
During the active growing season (typically spring and summer), most succulents need water every one to three weeks, depending on your climate, rainfall, and soil. In winter, most succulents are dormant and need minimal to no water.
Learn to recognize signs of thirst versus signs of overwatering. A thirsty succulent has slightly shriveled, wrinkled leaves. An overwatered succulent has soft, mushy, translucent leaves. It’s always safer to underwater than overwater.
Fertilizing Fundamentals
Succulents are light feeders that don’t require much fertilization. In fact, over-fertilizing causes weak, leggy growth and can damage roots. If you choose to fertilize, do so sparingly during the growing season only.
Use a balanced, diluted fertilizer formulated for cacti and succulents. Apply at half the recommended strength once in spring and once in mid-summer. Never fertilize during the dormant winter months.
Many gardeners successfully grow beautiful succulents without ever fertilizing. These plants are adapted to nutrient-poor soils and often perform perfectly well without supplemental feeding.
Pest and Disease Management
Healthy succulents are generally pest-free, but problems can occasionally arise. The most common pests include mealybugs (white, cottony clusters), aphids (tiny green or black insects), and scale (brown or tan bumps on leaves).
Treat pest problems quickly by removing affected areas or using insecticidal soap. For mealybugs, a cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol effectively removes them.
Root rot, caused by overwatering, is the most common disease. Prevention through proper watering practices is far easier than treatment. If you catch rot early (soft, discolored leaves), you may be able to save the plant by removing affected areas and allowing the soil to dry completely.
Seasonal Care Adjustments
As seasons change, adjust your care routine accordingly. During spring and summer, succulents actively grow and need regular watering and occasional feeding. Colors may be less intense during this period of active growth.
In fall, gradually reduce watering as temperatures cool. Many succulents develop their most intense colors during cooler months. This is when varieties like Echeveria and Sempervivum show their deepest purples, pinks, and reds.
Winter is dormancy time for most succulents. Reduce watering dramatically—many varieties need no water at all during this period. Cold-hardy varieties like Sempervivum can remain outdoors through snow and ice. Tender varieties need protection or should be brought indoors in cold climates.
Designing Your Succulent Garden
Now that you understand the individual plants, let’s discuss how to combine them into a cohesive, beautiful garden design.
Planning Your Layout
Start by considering the conditions in your garden. Map out the areas with full sun versus partial shade, note where water tends to collect, and identify spots with excellent drainage. This site analysis helps you place the right plant in the right location.
Create a focal point using a large, dramatic specimen like Agave. Build your design outward from this anchor, adding mid-sized plants like Echeveria and Aloe vera, then fill in with ground covers like Sedum and Sempervivum.
Think about color relationships. You might create a monochromatic scheme using various shades of blue-green, or go bold with contrasting colors like burgundy and chartreuse. Consider how colors will change seasonally—plan for year-round interest.
Combining Textures and Forms
The most visually interesting succulent gardens mix different textures and growth forms. Combine spiky agaves with smooth, round Echeveria rosettes. Pair fine-textured Sedum with bold, architectural Aloe vera. This variety creates visual rhythm and prevents monotony.
Think about height variation as well. Use tall specimens as vertical accents, mid-height rosettes as the bulk of your planting, and low ground covers to tie everything together. This layering creates depth and dimension.
Incorporating Hardscaping
Succulents look particularly stunning when paired with natural stone, boulders, gravel, and other hardscaping elements. These materials complement the plants’ sculptural qualities and help with drainage.
Create pathways using decomposed granite or gravel. Edge beds with natural stone. Nestle plants between and around boulders to create a naturalistic desert landscape. The contrast between living plants and stone emphasizes the plants’ forms and colors.
Container Combinations
Even if you’re creating an in-ground garden, consider incorporating container plantings as well. Pots add height variation and can be moved to create seasonal displays. Group several containers of varying sizes for greater impact than a single pot would provide.
Choose containers that complement your garden style. Terracotta and unglazed ceramic work beautifully in rustic and Mediterranean gardens. Sleek concrete and metal containers suit modern landscapes. Ensure all containers have drainage holes.
Troubleshooting Common Problems
Even with these low-maintenance plants, occasional issues arise. Here’s how to address the most common problems.
Stretching and Etiolation
If your succulents develop long spaces between leaves and lean toward the light source, they’re not getting enough sun. This stretching, called etiolation, weakens plants and ruins their compact form. Move affected plants to a brighter location. The stretched growth won’t reverse, but new growth will be compact.
Color Fading
Succulents that lose their vibrant colors (except seasonal color changes) may need more sun or stress. Many succulents develop their best colors under intense light and moderate water stress. Gradually increase light exposure and slightly reduce watering frequency.
Leaf Drop
Lower leaves naturally yellow and drop as succulents grow—this is normal. However, if healthy leaves are dropping, check your watering. Both overwatering and severe underwatering can cause leaf drop. Adjust accordingly based on soil moisture levels.
Frost Damage
Tender succulents exposed to unexpected frost may develop water-soaked, damaged leaves. Remove damaged portions and protect plants from further frost exposure. In marginal climates, cover succulents with frost cloth on cold nights or move containers under eaves.
The Environmental Benefits of Succulent Gardening
Beyond their beauty and low maintenance, succulent gardens offer significant environmental advantages.
Water Conservation
In an era of increasing water scarcity, converting even a portion of your landscape to succulents dramatically reduces water consumption. Succulent gardens use 80-90% less water than traditional lawns, helping conserve this precious resource while maintaining beauty.
Reduced Chemical Use
Succulents rarely need pesticides or fertilizers, reducing chemical runoff into groundwater and local ecosystems. Their natural pest resistance and ability to thrive in poor soil means you can garden more sustainably.
Supporting Biodiversity
While succulents aren’t native to all regions, they provide nectar and pollen for local pollinators when they bloom. Many succulent flowers attract hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies, supporting these important species.
Urban Heat Island Mitigation
Replacing heat-absorbing hardscaping or water-hungry lawns with succulents helps cool urban areas. Living plants, even drought-tolerant ones, moderate temperatures through transpiration and shade, making cities more livable.
Starting Your Succulent Garden Journey
You now have comprehensive knowledge about five exceptional succulent varieties and how to grow them successfully. Let’s summarize the key points to launch your succulent gardening success.
Each of these plants—Echeveria with its rose-like rosettes, versatile Sedum ground covers, dramatic Agave specimens, practical Aloe vera, and cold-hardy Sempervivum—brings unique qualities to your garden. Together, they offer options for every climate, every garden size, and every design style.
Remember the fundamental principles: excellent drainage is non-negotiable, less water is almost always better than more, and succulent garden plants thrive on benign neglect rather than constant attention. These plants evolved to survive harsh conditions, and they actually perform better when you resist the urge to fuss over them.
Start small if you’re new to succulent gardening. Choose two or three plants from this list that appeal to you and match your climate. Plant them in a small bed or a few containers. Observe how they respond to your conditions, learn their rhythms, and build your confidence. Success with these first plants will inspire you to expand your succulent collection and garden.
The beauty of succulent gardening is that it’s genuinely accessible to everyone. Whether you have acres of land or a small patio, a green thumb or a history of killing houseplants, bright sun or partial shade—there are succulents that will thrive in your conditions. These remarkable plants remove the barriers that prevent many people from gardening, making it possible for anyone to create beautiful outdoor spaces.
As you develop your succulent garden, you’ll discover the meditative pleasure of observing these slow-growing plants change with the seasons. You’ll notice when new offsets appear, when flower stalks emerge, when colors shift with temperature changes. This quiet observation connects you with natural rhythms and provides a peaceful counterpoint to our busy modern lives.
Your succulent garden will become a source of pride, a conversation starter, and a personal sanctuary. It will greet you with color and form every time you step outside, asking almost nothing in return. This is gardening at its most rewarding—beautiful results with minimal input, sustainability without sacrifice, and success practically guaranteed.
Now is the perfect time to begin. Visit your local nursery, select a few plants from our top five list, prepare a sunny spot with well-draining soil, and start your succulent garden journey. The plants are waiting, and they’re remarkably eager to please. Before you know it, you’ll be the proud caretaker of a stunning, low-maintenance garden that transforms your outdoor space into something truly special.
Welcome to the wonderful world of succulent gardening. Your garden—and the planet—will thank you for it.