Sedum 'Tricolor'

Sedum 'Tricolor': Green, Cream and Pink in One Tidy Mat

'Tricolor' is Neapolitan ice cream for your rock garden. Green, creamy white and pink on every little leaf, and the pink gets deeper as fall rolls in. NO SPOON NEEDED. NO BRAIN FREEZE EITHER.

Plant Characteristics:

• Botanical Name: Sedum spurium 'Tricolor' (also listed as Phedimus spurius)
• Common Name: Variegated Two-row Stonecrop
• Height: 10–15 cm (4–6 in)
• Spread: 30–45 cm (12–18 in)
• Flowers: Soft pink, star-shaped flowers in small clusters
• Bloom Time: Summer (June to August)
• Foliage: Small, scalloped leaves variegated in green, creamy white and pink, forming a low, semi-evergreen mat; the pink deepens in fall
• Features: Rabbit resistant

Where to Plant: Use it to edge a path, soften the front of a sunny border, fill a rock garden or trail over the side of a container or trough. The light, multicoloured leaves brighten dark mulch and stone. It's slower and less pushy than many of its relatives, so it suits small spaces.

Companion Plants: Use 'Tricolor' as a colourful carpet in a sunny, dry bed with white pasque flowers, purple pea flowers and red coneflowers. Pulsatilla vulgaris 'Alba' opens white pasque flowers at 20 to 25 cm in April and May. Echinacea SunMagic® Vintage Hot Red adds red coneflowers at 45 to 60 cm from July to September. Baptisia 'Grape Escape' brings dusky purple spikes at 105 to 120 cm in May and June. Pennisetum Lumen Gold™ glows bright gold at 30 to 60 cm in spring.

Plant Care: Plant in full sun to part sun, in well-drained, average to dry soil. Full sun brings out the best pink tones. In heavy clay, add grit or plant on a slope so water doesn't pool around the roots in winter. Water through the first season, then only during long dry spells. Variegated sedums sometimes throw all-green shoots. Pinch these out as soon as you see them, or the faster green growth can take over. Shear off tired stems and old flower heads in early spring. Break off rooted pieces in early summer to start new plants.

History: Two-row stonecrop, Sedum spurium, is native to the Caucasus region between Europe and Asia and gets its name from the way its leaves line up along the stems. Gardeners have grown it as a groundcover for generations, and variegated forms such as 'Tricolor' have long been used to add colour to rock gardens and edges.

Final Thoughts: Spill it over a wall or down a dry slope. Deer and rabbits skip dessert entirely. MORE FOR YOU.