Common Name: stonecrop
Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Crassulaceae
Zone: 3 to 9
Height: 1.00 to 1.50 feet
Spread: 1.50 to 2.00 feet
Bloom Time: August to September
Bloom Description: Yellow-green
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Maintenance: Low
Suggested Use: Ground Cover
Attracts: Butterflies
Tolerate: Rabbit, Drought
Culture
Easily grown in average, dry to medium, well-drained soils in full sun. Tolerates some light shade. Also tolerates drought and heat, particularly once established. Plants must have good soil drainage to perform well. Plants generally thrive in sandy to gravelly soils of average to moderate fertility. Plants grown in overly rich soils or in too much shade will produce weak, floppy growth. Plants slowly spread over time.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Sedum is a genus of about 400 species found mainly in the mountainous areas of North America but some also in dry area of South America. Most are succulent. They are tough, drought tolerant, easy-to-grow perennials that feature star-shaped flowers in clusters blooming on fleshy-leaved plants ranging from mat-forming ground covers to clump-forming upright mounds. Some of the most popular garden plants are hybrids.
Genus name comes from the Latin word sedeo meaning to sit in reference to the general growing habit of many of the sedums (they sit and sprawl over rocks).
Plants in the genus Sedum are commonly called stonecrops because they are typically found in the wild growing on rocky or stony areas.
'Twinkling Star' is a hybrid noted for its upright and compact plant habit, freely basally branching habit with dense and bushy growth and overall good garden performance. This cultivar has attractive yellow-green flowers with colorful rounded grey-green foliage. Pinching out the tips in early June or July will keep the plant bushy and compact. 'Twinkling Star' originated in a cross pollination program in Rijpwetering, The Netherlands in 2005. It is a product of Hylotelephium spectabile 'Purple Emperor' crossed with Sedum telephium 'Sunkissed'. U.S. Plant Patent #21,507 was granted November 16, 2010.
Problems
Watch for slugs and snails. Scale may occur. Rotting out is possible in wet and/or poorly drained conditions. Taller sedum hybrids with large flower heads are susceptible to flopping. This can be avoided by providing full sun conditions and planting in soils that are not too moist or rich. Pinching in spring can also force stems to grow thicker and bushier.
Uses
Border fronts or rock gardens. Best massed or in groups. Small area ground cover. Site in areas where both the foliage and flowers may be appreciated. Also effective in containers.