<i>Sedum spurium</i>

Sedum spurium ‘Ruby Mantle’ Photos courtesy of Great Plant Picks

S. spurium ‘Fuldaglut’

Specifics Name: Sedum spurium Common name: Two-row stonecrop Growth habit: Foliage grows to 4 inches tall (up to 6 inches when in flower) and up to 24 inches wide. Landscape uses: A groundcover along rock walls or in alpine gardens; in containers or on green roofs. Hardiness: Zones 4-9.

Sedum spurium strikes quite a chord with me because of its interesting combination of whimsy and durability. It’s a fantastic choice for the casual or even haphazard garden. But it’s also a good fit for the more formal or modern landscape.

Place S. spurium along rock walls, pop it in spare geometric containers or group it with other graphic succulents. It is also perfect for troughs and alpine gardens. The species has become a popular green roof plant.

Two-row stonecrop typically matures to 4 inches tall and forms a durable mat that chokes out weeds.

The succulent leaves range from green, bronze, red or variegated. Small flowers appear in summer and even the stems are colorful, including green, red, purple and brown. Despite its delicate look, S. spurium tolerates heat, drought, full sun and poor soils.

S. spurium is propagated by rooted stem cuttings.

Some cultivars
‘John Creech’ is an evergreen perennial that features scalloped, obovate mid-green leaves about ½ inch on stems that rise to about 2 inches. It produces star-shaped pink flowers in corymbs about 1½ inches across held on a stem about 4 inches tall in fall. It will create a mat about 24 inches or more across. It’s hardy in USDA Hardiness Zones 4-9.

‘Ruby Mantle’ has small, scalloped red-flushed green leaves that grow to 4 inches tall. The small red flowers rise to 6 inches. ‘Ruby Mantle’ grows best in a moderately fertile, well-drained neutral soil in full sun. It is drought tolerant once established and will also tolerate poor soil. It will not tolerate wet conditions and poor drainage. It’s also hardy in Zones 4-9.

‘Fuldaglut’ has small, scalloped bronze-red leaves that grow to 4 inches tall. Small, star-shaped, rose-red flowers grow to 6 inches tall. It’s hard in Zones 4-9.

‘Red Carpet’ is not as vigorous as other green- or bronze-colored selections. It’s also not as floriferous. But the red foliage persists throughout the growing season and changes to deep crimson in fall and winter.