October 10, 2024, 10:44 am | Read time: 3 minutes
They are easy to care for, robust, and hardy, and just as diverse, colorful, and decorative. The many types of sedum plants offer (amateur) gardeners different heights, flowering times, and colors—the right plant species for the fall and climate change.
Butterflies, bees, and bumblebees love sedum, and so do perennial gardeners. The Sedum genus has already been named Perennial of the Year twice (2000, 2011) by the Association of German Perennial Gardeners. Stonecrop, a name derived from its hardy nature, is one of the plants enjoying renewed popularity. This name is attributed to the plant’s thick leaves, as the sedum genus belongs to the Crassulaceae or thick-leaf plant family. These leaves serve as reservoirs for moisture, a key factor in the plant’s robustness.
Do not cut back sedum plants in the fall
The tall sedum plants, in particular, are attractive almost all year round. Stonecrop, for example, produces flowers in many beautiful colors – from silvery white to various shades of pink to a solid dark red. Whether with buds or flowers, they are also suitable as long-lasting cut plants. Also beautiful are seed heads covered in frost or snow in late fall or winter. In principle, the perennial should not be cut back in the fall. This is because they provide a refuge for many insects in fall and winter. Some plants also do not recover from radical pruning. Therefore, if trimming is necessary, it’s recommended to shorten the shoots by no more than a third.
Yellow sedum carpets
For quickly covering smaller areas, the yellow-flowering stonecrop serves as an ideal ground cover that spreads through creeping. Evergreen and with a dense cushion, it is a year-round helper in the garden or in pots, brightening up unsightly areas.
Houseleeks and rock roses are also good examples of frugality. Their Latin name is Sempervivum, which means ever-living. It thrives in conditions where few other plants can sustain themselves over time. It is available with different rosette sizes. While the plant perishes after flowering, showcasing tall stems adorned with red, pink, yellow, cream, or white blossoms, it propagates through daughter rosettes, eventually creating dense plant mats.
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Practical plants
Sedum plants can be used in many ways: in beds, plant bowls and troughs, and decorative elements. Sand is more suitable as a substrate than fertilized soil, and it should not become waterlogged.
Sedum is a favorite among those who appreciate frugality in gardening. Because propagation is very simple. In spring, simply cut off several shoots with a spade and plant them. It is also possible to harvest so-called vital head cuttings from tall varieties, which then take root in water. Daughter rosettes of houseleek can simply be planted in the ground. These plants are practical through and through: they are forgiving of mistakes, and fertilizing is not necessary. And they need little watering. Thus, sedum plants offer the joy of gardening with minimal effort.