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Stonecrop Varieties — 10 Sedums and Where Each Belongs

Stonecrop varieties split into upright and creeping sedums, and the 2 groups want different ground. 10 compared on height, hardiness and foot traffic.

By Salma 3 min read Save to Pinterest — opens Pinterest in a new tab
A dense cushion of blue-green Corsican stonecrop in a terracotta pot topped with grit
Photo: dyturge, Pixabay Content License, via Pixabay
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Stonecrop is a genus of roughly 400 species that behave like two entirely different plants. The tall border kinds and the ground-hugging mats share drought tolerance and nothing else about where they belong.

Upright border sedums

Height, flower and hardiness
VarietyHeightFlowerHardy toFoliage
‘Autumn Joy’24 inPink → rust, Aug–Oct−30°FGrey-green
‘Matrona’24 inDusty pink−30°FPurple stems
‘Purple Emperor’18 inPink−20°FNear-black
‘Brilliant’18 inBright pink−30°FPale green
Sedum telephium18 inDull purple−30°FGreen

1. ‘Autumn Joy’ (Hylotelephium ‘Herbstfreude’). The standard, and deservedly. Flat flower heads open pale pink in August and dry to rust, holding through winter. Leave the stems standing — they look better in frost than anything else in the border.

2. ‘Matrona’. Taller, with purple-flushed stems and a stronger silhouette. Holds itself up better than ‘Autumn Joy’ in soil that is slightly too rich.

3. ‘Purple Emperor’. Grown for near-black foliage rather than flower. Needs full sun to keep the colour; in shade it is an ordinary green sedum.

4. ‘Brilliant’. The brightest pink of the border types, and the one bees find first.

5. Sedum telephium. The wild European species the garden varieties came from. Less showy, more drought-hardy, and useful in a naturalistic planting.

Creeping stonecrops

6. Sedum spurium — two-row stonecrop. ‘Dragon’s Blood’ and ‘Tricolor’ are the common forms. Four inches tall, spreads steadily, takes light footfall, and colours deep red in cold.

7. Sedum album — white stonecrop. Tiny bead-like leaves, two inches, red-tinted in sun. One of the toughest plants available and a green-roof staple.

8. Sedum acre — goldmoss. Bright yellow-green, two inches, flowers acid yellow. Spreads aggressively from the smallest fragment, which is either the point or the problem depending on where you put it.

9. Sedum rupestre ‘Angelina’. Needle foliage, chartreuse in summer and orange in winter, six inches. The brightest foliage colour in the genus.

10. Sedum ternatum — woodland stonecrop. The exception that prefers part shade and slightly more moisture. Native to eastern North America and the one to use under trees.

Tip

Every creeping sedum here propagates from a broken piece laid on soil. Snap off a few inches, lay it on the surface, press it down, and water once. There is no need to bury it or to use rooting hormone — stems root from wherever they touch ground, which is how they colonise rock in the wild.

Where each group belongs

  • Border, late season — upright kinds, planted in groups of three, in the poorest sunny spot you have.
  • Between pavers and on steps — album, acre or spurium, light traffic only.
  • Walls and rockeries — anything creeping; they root into mortar joints.
  • Green roof — a mixed mat of album, acre, rupestre and spurium, which is what commercial suppliers ship.
  • Containers — upright kinds alone look awkward; a creeping variety spilling over the rim is what makes the pot work.

Common questions

What is the difference between sedum and stonecrop?

None — stonecrop is the common name for Sedum. The complication is botanical rather than horticultural: the tall border types such as 'Autumn Joy' were moved into the genus Hylotelephium, so nurseries label them either way. In the garden the useful split is upright against creeping, because it decides where the plant goes.

Which stonecrop can you walk on?

The low mat-forming kinds, and only lightly. Sedum album, Sedum acre and Sedum spurium take occasional footfall between pavers and recover, but none of them is a lawn substitute for regular traffic. For a path that gets daily use, creeping thyme handles it considerably better.

Do sedums need full sun?

Most want at least six hours, and colour is the reason. The red, purple and blue-grey varieties green up and stretch in shade, which is the commonest complaint about a sedum that was bought for its foliage. Sedum ternatum is the main exception — a woodland species that genuinely prefers part shade.

Are sedums good for green roofs?

They are the standard planting for extensive green roofs, because they survive in two to four inches of substrate, tolerate wind and reflected heat, and recover from drought that would kill almost anything else. Sedum album, acre, reflexum and spurium are the usual mix, often supplied as a pre-grown mat.

Why is my sedum flopping open in the middle?

Too rich a soil, too much water, or too little sun — usually a combination, and it mostly affects the tall border types. They evolved on poor dry ground and lush growth is weak growth. Cutting the stems back by half in late spring, the Chelsea chop, produces a shorter sturdier plant that holds itself up.

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