Sempervivum 'Sunset'

Sempervivum 'Sunset': A Rosette Glowing with Seasonal Fire

Like a sky set ablaze, Sempervivum 'Sunset' delivers a vibrant display of warm tones that shift with the seasons—copper, rose, and gold blending across each symmetrical rosette. As temperatures cool, the colours intensify, making this hens-and-chicks variety especially striking in autumn and spring. Its neat, clumping form offsets slowly to form a low, textured tapestry perfect for dry, sunny spaces. Whether grown in containers or rock crevices, it offers lasting structure and colour with virtually no maintenance.

Plant Characteristics:

• Height: 5–10 cm (rosettes), up to 20 cm in bloom
• Spread: 20–30 cm, gradually offsetting
• Flower Colour: Soft pink (on mature rosettes)
• Flowering Period: Midsummer
• Foliage: Multicoloured rosettes in copper, rose, and gold; colours intensify in cool weather
• Sunlight Requirements: Full sun
• Soil Requirements: Very well-drained, sandy or gravelly soil

Uses and Benefits: Sempervivum 'Sunset' is ideal for troughs, stone walls, dry slopes, and gravel gardens, where its sunset-toned foliage adds warmth and bold contrast. Hardy, drought tolerant, and evergreen, it thrives in lean soil and exposed sites. Use it to bring year-round form and seasonal colour shifts to low-maintenance plantings or water-wise designs.

Companion Plants: Combine 'Sunset' with Sedum 'Angelina' for a glowing, sun-drenched pairing of orange and chartreuse. Add Gaillardia 'Mesa Yellow' for bright golden daisies that echo and amplify the warm palette. Anchor the planting with Schizachyrium scoparium 'The Blues', whose steely-blue foliage and upright habit offer soft texture and a graceful autumn transition to wine-red tones.

Care Instructions: Plant in full sun with sharp drainage. Water sparingly—sempervivums require little moisture once established. Remove spent flower stalks and gently clean up dead leaves in spring. Offsets can be divided and replanted as desired to spread colour and form.

History: A cultivar selected for its rich, fiery tones and compact habit, 'Sunset' is part of the hardy Sempervivum lineage native to the mountains of Europe. It carries the classic traits of toughness, symmetry, and seasonal interest that have made hens-and-chicks garden staples for generations.

Final Thoughts: With its glowing hues and sculptural form, Sempervivum 'Sunset' lights up the garden like the end of a golden day—resilient, radiant, and always in season.