Saturday, August 07, 2010

Creeping Sedum



This sedum has been identified as Sedum sarmentosum. (Please see comments.)

***See June 11, 2011 for more about this sedum. http://bethlehem-pa-gardening.blogspot.com/2011/06/creeping-sedum.html ****
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I have been trying to identify this sedum for years. Susan Harris of Sustainable and Urban Gardening raised the question again.

Sedum lineare 'Golden Teardrop' shown at Dave’s Garden or Sedum acre.

Margaret Roach of A Way to Garden cited an article from W.J Beale Botanical Garden that makes a point for Sedum acre.

Whatever the name, this little sedum is fast-spreading, drought tolerant and easy to keep in check. It grows in the hot, full sun or in the shade. It doesn't seem to have any special soil requirements. In June, it's covered with tiny yellow flowers.



When it grows over the stepping stones, I hoe around the stones and scoop up the little plants. It pulls out easily.

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Voila - lots of green for the compost bin.
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I wish I knew its name. Any thoughts?

39 comments:

Joyce said...

Your sedum looks just awesome. I got this plant from my father's garden a long time ago and thought of it as a weed, never a sedum. But the past couple of years I have let it grow around and it makes a beautiful ground cover or hanging down on the side of a pot, or rock gardens. Your right it does grow fast and very easy to pull out. Great Post.

Marie said...

Thanks Peeoknee.

I haven't tried it in a pot but I've seen pictures. I may try it next year.

Morning Glories in Round Rock said...

It's lovely the way your Sedum softens the lines of the stepping stones. I just love Sedum, but have never had much luck with it.

Marie said...

MG,

It's stepable too. Sometimes when I don't get to clear it back from the stepping stones we just walk on it. It doesn't seem to do it any major harm.

The sedum should love the the Texas sun. :-)

Alison Kerr said...

Aren't sedums great little, useful ground covers? They are used a lot in roof gardens and rock gardens and can be used as a lawn substitute.

Some of them are edible too - they taste slightly peppery.

Anonymous said...

Looks like Sedum Sarmentosum
aka Gold Moss, Stringy Stonecrop or Graveyard Moss. Awesome plant, eh?

Jon

susan harris said...

Hi. I continue to see it identified as both S. acre and S. sarmentosum. It was Ed Snodgrass (Mr. Greenroof Plants himself) who ID'd it for me as Sarmentosum, so I'm going with that.

Marie said...

Thanks Susan! And Jon! I really appreciate the clarification. Sarmentosum it is!

Anonymous said...

This is lovely! We have a steep bank in front of our house, and have been looking for a good ground cover so we don't have to use the weed-eater. Does this do a good job keep weeds from popping up? It's right by a busy road, and I don't want to be climbing around weeding all the time :)

Thanks!

Marie said...

Anon. It does a pretty good job of keeping weeds to a minimum but I can't say it completely eliminates them.

Anonymous said...

I live in the northeast of England, I'm looking for something to replace my lawn which my puppy has demolished, do you think it'll be any good? Thanx for any info

Marie said...

Anon,
Puppies can sure make a mess out of a lawn especially in spring.
Other than keeping the pup off the grass until a new lawn is well established it will be difficult to have a nice lawn. I'm not sure what zone you live in but here is some information on grass http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/dg8464.html

I hope it helps. Good luck.

Cathy said...

Have had this for years in large and small areas..in Pa. and Ky. I love it!! First of all, the color is lovely and looks great with any other color or makes a statement by itself. I have it now completely by itself on a very steep bank with a few little patches of Ajuga here and there. The area is about 25'x25' and is beautiful year round as it does not suffer much in the winter, and is the first thing to pop back in the spring. I also grow it as a ground cover in almost all my perennial beds, when it starts to infringe on the plants it easily pulls up and I just throw the pickings in another area that needs some natural mulch and it grows on....sometimes I don't even cover the scraps with dirt and they take off anyway..I have even mistakenly sprayed it with weedkiller (back in the day), it suffered a bit, but soon came back better than ever..we have 2 acres and I will continue to spread it all around for years to come..and to think, all of this beautiful sedum came with me from a few little sprigs brought from Pa. When we moved here 5yrs. ago...amazing plant! Another thing I do is sprinkle Preen in all my perrenial/sedum beds and have absolutely no weeds all season! Can't beat it and the sedum marches on!

Marie said...

Cathy, thanks for aharing your success story. My sedum was a gift from a friend's garden. I will never forget him now. Good tip about the Preen.

Debbie said...

Will this grow in south Florida (Treasure Coast)? I am in need of ground cover.

Marie said...

Acdording to USDA Sedum sarmentosum should grow in Florida. I'm in zone 6 in PA so I don't know hoow well it will grow in Florida. I'll bet if you can find it in a local nursery, it will be viable in your area.

Unknown said...

Can I plant this nder trees? How tall does it get? How much does it spread?

Marie said...


Sue, this sedum prefers fullsun but I also have it growing under a redbud tree. 4 to 6 inches. It does spread but it is easy to manage

Ben said...

We have a lot of pine trees in our yard that dump pine needles year round. I've been wondering about a ground cover for under the trees. Do you think this would work well under pine trees?

Marie said...

Ben,
I don't think it will do well since the soil will be acidy and these plants like full sun. Sorry, my opinion.

Alison said...

How about Colorado? Like the fact that it is good for droughts...

Marie said...

I'm not at all sure about Colorado, Alison. That's way out of my territory.

Anonymous said...

Does cold winters kill it?

Marie said...

No. We had a very cold winter and it looks fine.

Anonymous said...

Hi, will it grow in California? And how do I maintenance this beautiful plant? Thank you ��

Marie said...

It was very easy to get started here. i can only guess that if you are anywhere near zone 6, it will grow. Dood luck.

Unknown said...

Does this ground cover maintain it's color in the winter, or does it die out and sprout up again in the spring? I'm thinking I could cover our front bank with this. Would it still have to be mowed?

Anonymous said...

I'm jn central valley ca. I either have full sun all day, .or full shade. No in between. It gets to about 110 sometimes higher in summer and below freezing ( enough to kill bouganvellias ) in winter. Right now especially little rain.would this work for me?

cojett said...

I purchased some a couple years ago from a large local nursery. It was tagged as irish moss. It is really hardy I take an extra precaution in late fall by covering it with dead tree leaves.

Anonymous said...

I have grown this for years. Tore some up and brought it with me when moved 11years ago. It requires very little to keep it looking beautiful and barely roots so it's easy to pull and move around. Try growing some in a hanging basket or an old birdbath, it's absolutely beautiful...I'm so glad I found this pin...I had no clue what it was even called, someone told me it was chick weed years ago, but this is the first time I've seen its actual name. Be aware, it's spreads extremely fast, but is very easy to keep under control and to propagate.

Rob White said...

Post where to buy it please... Thanks!

Anonymous said...

How do you get rid of it?

Anonymous said...

Is it deer resistant?

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Anonymous said...

They do grow in the shade.

Anonymous said...

I live in Ontario Canada and it does well here!

UK Tarpaulins said...
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