Sedum SunSparkler® 'Cherry Tart'

Sedum SunSparkler® 'Cherry Tart': Cherry-Red Buttons for Hot, Dry Strips

'Cherry Tart' is cheeky, red and fully aware of it. Round cherry-red leaves all season, dark pink flowers on top, and the kind of attitude your mother warned you about. A LITTLE TART NEVER HURT ANYBODY.

Plant Characteristics:

• Botanical Name: Sedum hybrid (also listed as Hylotelephium)
• Common Name: Stonecrop
• Series: SunSparkler®, from breeder Chris Hansen
• Height: 10–15 cm (4–6 in)
• Spread: 40–45 cm (16–18 in)
• Flowers: Dark pink, star-shaped flowers in rounded clusters
• Bloom Time: Late summer to early fall (August to September)
• Foliage: Round, succulent, cherry-red leaves that keep their colour all season
• Features: Rabbit resistant
• Plant Patent: USPP 24,603

Where to Plant: Use it as an edging plant, a small-scale groundcover or a colour spot in a rock garden or trough. It looks great spilling from containers. It's a good fit for the hot, dry strip along a sidewalk or driveway, where thirstier plants give up.

Companion Plants: Geranium 'Rozanne' weaves violet flowers at 45 to 50 cm from June to September, running right into this sedum's bloom. Echinacea Sombrero® Granada Gold adds yellow coneflowers at 46 to 56 cm from June to August. Up front, Sisyrinchium angustifolium brings grassy leaves and violet flowers from May to July. All of them do well in full sun or partial sun.

Plant Care: Plant in full sun for the deepest colour. It tolerates a little afternoon shade, though the leaves will be less red. Give it well-drained soil. Sandy or gravelly soil is ideal. In heavy clay, mix in grit or plant it slightly raised, because wet winter soil causes more trouble than cold. Water through the first season, then only in long dry spells. Don't fertilize. In early spring, trim away last year's dead stems before new growth begins. Divide in spring every few years if the clump thins in the centre.

History: 'Cherry Tart' was bred by Christopher Hansen in Hudsonville, Michigan, from a controlled cross made in July 2009 between two unnamed plants from his own breeding lines, and it was selected in 2010. It received U.S. Plant Patent 24,603 in 2014 and joined his SunSparkler® series of compact, colourful sedums.

Final Thoughts: Deer and rabbits keep their hands to themselves. Bees and butterflies do not. PUT A CHERRY ON YOUR GARDEN.