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Sedum

Sedum selections
Sedum

Sedums are nearly the perfect plants. They look good from the moment they emerge from the soil in spring and continue to look fresh and fabulous all growing season long. Many are attractive even in winter when their foliage dies and is left standing. They're also drought-tolerant and need very little if any care. They're favorites of butterflies and useful bees. The tall types are outstanding for cutting and drying. Does it get better than that? Only in the fact that there are many different types of this wonderful plant, from tall types that will top 2 feet to low-growing groundcovers that form mats. All thrive in full sun with good drainage. Ground cover types do a good job of suppressing weeds, but seldom tolerate foot traffic. Some of the smaller ones are best grown in pots or treated as houseplants.

Light:
Sun,Part Sun
Zones:
3-10
Plant Type:
Perennial
Plant Height:
2-24 inches tall, depending on variety
Plant Width:
6 inches or several feet wide, depending on variety
Flower Color:
White, pink, red, purple, yellow, or orange flowers, depending on variety; Gray/Silver Leaves, Red/Purple Leaves, Blue-Green Leaves, Variegated Leaves, depending on variety
Bloom Time:
Blooms midsummer to autumn, depending on variety
Landscape Uses:
Containers,Beds & Borders,Slopes,Groundcover
Special Features:
Flowers,Attractive Foliage,Fall Color,Winter Interest,Cut Flowers,Dried Flowers,Attracts Birds,Attracts Hummingbirds,Attracts Butterflies,Drought Tolerant,Easy to Grow
Top Varieties
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(Sedum 'Angelina') is a quick-growing groundcover with golden, needle-like leaves that turn orange in fall. It grows 4 inches tall. Zones 6-9
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(Sedum telephium 'Autumn Charm') shows off rose-pink flowers in late summer and autumn and lovely white-edged foliage. It grows 15 inches tall and wide. Zones 4-8
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(Sedum 'Autumn Joy') is a classic. Its 2-foot-tall stems carry gray fleshy leaves and are topped with green broccoli-like heads of flower buds that open pink and turn rusty red by fall. Zones 3-8
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(Sedum 'Black Jack') has sturdy 24-inch-tall deep-purple stems clothed with succulent dark purple leaves. Pink flowers cluster in 5- to 8-inch-wide heads. It thrives in full sun in Zones 3-8.
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(Sedum 'Frosty Morn') bears stunning, silver-edged gray-green leaves and clusters of pink flowers in fall. It grows 1 foot tall. Zones 3-9
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(Sedum kamtschaticum) has evergreen foliage, making it an effective groundcover. The yellow flowers look great over the rich green foliage. To 4 inches tall. Zones 3-9
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(Sedum makinoi 'Ogon') has mats of small, pink-flushed gold leaves on creeping stems. Yellow green flowers are produced in summer. This is a fine ground cover plant in rock and crevice gardens. It grows 8 inches tall and is hardy in Zones 7-9.
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(Sedum 'Purple Emperor') bears rich purple foliage and clusters of pinkish-purple blooms in late summer and fall. It grows 2 feet tall. Zones 3-7
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Sedum acre is an evergreen that grows 2 to 3 inches tall and has dark green foliage with yellow flowers in summer. Zones 4-9
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Sedum cauticola is a Japanese species with lovely silvery, blue-green leaves and pink-purple flowers in autumn. It grows 2 inches tall. Zones 5-9
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Sedum sieboldii has blue-green leaves blushed with purple. In fall, it produces clusters of rosy-pink flowers. This groundcover grows 4 inches tall. Zones 6-9
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Sedum spathulifolium is a quick-spreading selection to 4 inches tall that has silvery-gray foliage and bright yellow flowers in summer. Zones 5-9
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(Sedum spurium 'Tricolor') bears green leaves edged in pink and white. The pink flowers appear in summer. Zones 3-8
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(Sedum kamtschaticum 'Variegatum') has lustrous green, flushed pink, spoon-shaped leaves frosted with white along the edge. Its bright yellow starry flowers bloom from summer into fall, gradually becoming orange. It grows 4 inches tall. Zones 3-8
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(Sedum 'Vera Jameson') offers purple foliage and pinky-rose flowers in late summer or early fall. It grows 1 foot tall. Zones 4-9
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Garden Plans
Hot-Color, Hot-Weather Garden Plan
Pondside Garden Plan
Extra-Easy Sun-Loving Garden Plan
No-Fuss Sun-Loving Garden Plan
Garden Plan for Attracting Birds and Butterflies
Large Summer Sunny Border
Corner of Grasses
Drought-Tolerant Garden Plan
Cottage Garden
Country-Style Fall-Garden Plan
Easy Street-Side Garden Plan
Summer Cottage Garden Plan
A Simple, Late-Summer Perennial Garden Plan
Summer Rock Garden
Beginner Garden for Full Sun
Soft-Color Summer Garden Plan
Butterfly Garden Art
Island Bed 1
Garden Design for a Deck
Along a Path Garden Plan
Beautiful Butterflies Garden Plan
Four Gorgeous Bulb and Perennial Gardens
Classic Container Garden Plan
Garden Plan to Soften a Fence
Bird and Butterfly Garden Plan
Annual Raised-Bed Garden Plan
Corner of Perennials
Easy Slope Garden Plan
Long-Blooming Rose and Perennial Garden Plan
Side-Yard Cottage Garden Plan
Drought-Tolerant Slope Garden Plan
Fall Favorites Garden Plan
Low-Water Garden Plan
No-Fail Container Garden Plan
No-Fuss Bird and Butterfly Garden Plan
Beautiful Sunny Summer Garden Plan
Plant It With
Fountaingrass

Fountaingrass softens the stolid heads of Autumn Joy sedum with its graceful arching bottlebrush flowers in sunny places.

Russian sage

In late summer and early fall, Russian sage has airy spires of silver foliage and lavender blue flowers that play off well against tall live-forever hybrids such as 'Matrona'.

Black-eyed Susan

The ubiquitous combination of Goldsturm black-eyed Susan with Autumn Joy sedum has become a classic. They bloom at the same time and enjoy similar conditions.

Artemisia

In full sun, the finely cut silver foliage of Silver Mound artemisia plays off well against bright green Kamschatka sedum

Propagation
Seed
Division
Stem Cuttings

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