I’m at My Best When Fall Arrives

Perennial of the Week: Sedum – ‘Stonecrop’

Just when some perennials are getting ready for a long winter’s nap, many varieties of Sedum (Stonecrop) are pulling out all the stops with bright, clustered blooms in shades that range from reddish purple to neon-red, and rose pink.

Bonus: These long-lasting blooms look great in a sunny garden bed, and as cut flowers.

Even before Sedum blooms, it is a joy to behold thanks to its fabulous foliage. These plants are valued for their lovely leaves, which can be blue-gray, jade green, chartreuse, bright green, or red. Some varieties of Sedum feature distinctive red stems.

In addition to being beautiful, Sedum’s thick leaves and stems are built to hold on to water for weeks at a time. Sedum’s drought-resistant nature is great news for gardeners who crave color and excitement in the landscape, but have limited time to water. Sedum WANTS to dry out before its next watering.

More great news: Sedum is so versatile that there is a variety for every part of your garden. Shorter, low-growing plants make excellent groundcover and can be successfully used as border plants, in rock gardens, and even in containers. Many of these varieties will bloom during the summer. Creeping types of Sedum that do not grow taller than three inches high will readily beautify sloped properties while adding color and texture that never needs to be mowed. Other varieties have a taller, upright habit that makes them perfect for group plantings.

Birds, bees, and butterflies are particularly fond of Sedum, which offers pollinators a late-blooming tasty treat!

Our Rohsler’s Grown varieties of Sedum are ready to be planted! We are currently offering Stonecrop “Angelina,” S. rupestre (a chartreuse-leaved variety), and “Blue Spruce,” a groundcover with lovely blue foliage and yellow flowers. We also grow S. spurium “Dragon’s Blood,” a red-blooming variety with bronze foliage; S. spurium “Voodoo” a red-leaved plant with red stems and rose-colored blooms; Jade Tuffet Sunsparkler, which features jade green leaves and dark pink blooms; S. Seiboldii, a pink variety; S. Thunderhead, a 24-30-inch tall variety that produces deep purplish pink flowers; and “Matrona,” a three-foot tall beauty with pink flowers and bluish leaves with dark red stems and ribs.

We also grow the aptly-named Autumn Joy, a 36-inch tall plant that produces pink flowers in July and August. The flowers turn maroon as fall arrives, and the seed heads can last into winter!

S. spectabile “Autumn Fire” is also one of our favorites to grow. This plant tops out at 30 inches tall and offers up clusters of rose-to-red flowers in summer. The plants turn deep bronze in fall.

We grow many other types of Sedum – and all of them are ready for you to plant today. Stop by and ask our experts which types of Sedum are right for you!

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