In gardening, the Sedum plant is often used for alpine slides, or in common parlance it called Sedum. It does not require much care and can be suitable for growing and planting in open ground even for beginners. There are more than 500 in nature.
Where to plant
All sedums unpretentious, can grow in a sunny area, as well as in a shaded place.
But with more sunlight, they become brighter, and acquire red hues. It is best to plant them in a free, empty place, at a distance from trees, so that fallen leaves do not fall on them.
Sedums are most often planted along the edges of borders, in flower beds, and in hanging pots.
How to prepare the soil
Sedums prefer soil fertile, with moderate humidity. They can also grow on rocky areas. In general, without replanting, they can grow for more than 5 years in one place.
The soil in the hole can be mixed from different mixtures:
- sand;
- leaf soil;
- humus;
- compost;
- ash.
Basic care after planting
After planting, sedum still requires minimal care. The main components of care are:
- Humidity. It is necessary to maintain optimal humidity, otherwise the plant will suffer from excess moisture. may rot.
- Removing weeds.
- Fertilizing with mineral and organic fertilizers. It is recommended to do this twice during the growing season, before the formation of inflorescences and after flowering.
- Sunlight. Due to lack of sunlight, the plant may become dull in color, the shoots will stretch out, which will spoil the decorative effect.
With minimal care, sedum can delight the gardener with its beauty.
Diseases and pests
Sedum is more resistant to various diseases. A common disease will be leaf spotting dark in color, may occur due to frequent watering or waterlogging of the soil.
The diseased plant should be dug up and destroyed.
If rot is present on some parts of the flower, then it should be sprayed with a fungicide solution.
Among the pests, the most common are:
- thrips;
- weevils.
Get rid of weevils you can do it yourself without using medications. To do this, they are shaken off the bush onto paper or material laid out under the bush, then destroyed. Against aphids Insect killers are available. If detected, it is necessary to spray the plant with Actellik.
Reproduction
Sedum propagation can occur in several ways:
- seeds;
- cuttings;
- dividing the bush.
Reproduction seeds Mainly used for first landing. With this method, the sedum will not receive its varietal characteristics.
The best way to propagate sedums is cuttings. Using this method, the plant will inherit all the characteristic varietal characteristics. It is performed in the following steps:
- Cuttings are taken before or after flowering from shoots 5-7 cm long.
- They are placed in wet sand.
- After growth begins and roots form, they are planted in a permanent place.
This is best done in the spring, after frost.
In the fall, you can cut cuttings, place them in a glass of water, and leave them until spring, constantly changing the water. And with the onset of spring, plant it together with a ball of earth in open ground.
Tall types of sedums reproduce better dividing the bush. To do this, dig up a bush in the spring, divide the root system into several parts and plant it.
Popular varieties
This species most often grows in nature on rocky shores, slopes, alpine meadows. It is a perennial plant with strong creeping roots.
The leaves are oval-shaped, serrated at the edges. The flowers are small, pink in color, collected in paniculate inflorescences. This species is very common and famous in gardening.
Used to decorate carpet paths and creeping flower beds.
It became widespread in the northern regions. Perennial or annual the plant can have inflorescences of various colors. Foliage can also be of different sizes, shapes and colors. Capable of forming creeping herbaceous carpets.
Perennial winter-hardy plant, up to 15 cm high. The hybrid fork has thin leaves, along the edges of which there is a red tint. The flowers are small, collected in a corymb inflorescence.
The color scheme can be varied. Flowering begins at 2-3 years of age, in August and lasts until the onset of the first frost.
Perennial plants, growing habitat is Kamchatka, Japan and the Far East.
Has thick shoots with foliage. Some varieties of Sedum Kamchatsky have a white stripe along the edges of the leaves. The flowers are small, collected in yellow or orange inflorescences.
White sedum is perennial evergreen plant. Grows in Russia, Kamchatka, and the Caucasus. It grows as a creeping carpet, reaching a height of 5 cm.
The flowers are collected in paniculate inflorescences, have a snow-white hue, and have a fragrant aroma.
It is an unpretentious plant that can tolerate severe frosts.
Siberia, the Caucasus and the European part of Russia are considered to be the birthplace of caustic sedum. Its distinctive feature is its golden-hued flowers.
Perennial creeping the plant, up to 10 cm high, has dense dark green foliage. The flowers are small and yellow in color.
The juice of this sedum is poisonous and can cause a burn if it comes into contact with the skin.
Perennial This type of plant has strong roots and erect stems up to half a meter high. The birthplace of growth is China and Japan. The leaves are light green, the inflorescences have a pink tint.
Tolerates harsh winters well adapts to any climatic conditions. Flowering occurs in August, lasting more than a month.
This type grows in sandy areas, in pine forests, often found among bushes. The perennial has stems up to half a meter high. It begins to bloom in July and before the onset of frost.
Some varieties are common and grown in Russia.
A perennial plant, it has thin roots, creeping stems and bluish leaves. In cultivation it prefers places where lots of sunshine. Perfect for group plantings.
Creeping (ground-blooded)
Creeping sedums have a height of no more than 20 cm. Perennial plants have powerful leaves, green in color, and shoots that die off after fruiting.
The flowers are small, collected several times in umbrella inflorescences. The color can be varied: red, yellow, pink. In ground-blooded sedums, the shoots do not die off during the winter, but are preserved.
Tall (shrub)
Tall sedums reach a height of up to 50 cm and have large green oval-shaped leaves. The flowers are small in size, collected in large umbrella inflorescences. Flowers can be of different colors.
These include the following types:
- sedum prominent diamond;
- stardust;
- white-pink;
- Telefium.
The foliage can have different shades and patterns, with white veins along the edges.
Unpretentious species
The most unpretentious types of sedum used in landscape design are:
- Kamchatka;
- false;
- caustic;
- white.
Rare species
There are also rare types of sedums that require more care and attention. Among them there are more famous rare species:
- oregano;
- shovel-leaved;
- multi-stemmed;
- glandular;
- loose;
- elegant;
- Alberta.
These sedums are multi-colored.
Heat-loving (for growing in containers)
There are also heat-loving species that are intended for growing in containers. They cannot be grown in open ground. The most popular among them:
- makina;
- linear;
- polychaete;
- Oregonian;
- bluish-leaved.
General points about the flower
In what areas is it used?
Sedum has been widely used in folk medicine, due to the existing medicinal properties. It has the following properties:
- anti-inflammatory;
- stimulating;
- wound healing;
- tonic;
- painkillers;
- hemostatic
It can eliminate headaches, relieve nervous tension, and normalize blood pressure. It is also used to treat various viral diseases.
Use in landscape design
Sedums are most often used in landscape design in the form of borders, flower beds, and various creeping flower carpets.
Due to the fact that they do not lose their decorative effect for a long time, they continue to bloom for a long time, and are popular and in demand.
With minimal care, the sedum is able to please its owner with its beauty. It won't be a problem even for beginners. Recently, sedums have increasingly become in demand due to their medicinal properties.
Sedum, or sedum, does not amaze with its striking beauty, but still it is loved by many gardeners. Various varieties of sedum are successfully used in landscape design: after all, the modest beauty of these plants (this is well conveyed by the photo) will decorate the flower arrangements of the garden. Although this perennial plant is quite unpretentious, it will still require proper care. This article describes in detail all the secrets of planting and growing sedum in open ground.
Sedum: description and varieties
Sedum, or sedum, belongs to the genus of succulents, the Crassulaceae family. Sedum is a herbaceous plant, although most types of sedum are perennial, but annual and biennial ones are also found. Sedum has spread throughout the planet, choosing to live in places with a temperate climate and bright sun, but it is more widespread in the Northern Hemisphere.
Sedum is beautiful with its leaves even when it is not blooming
There are about 500 known varieties of sedum, which in appearance may be completely different from each other. Most species of sedum are low-growing, creeping and turf-forming; shrubs or subshrubs are less common. Flowers come in a variety of colors: white, yellow, greenish, pink, dark red and even blue.
The most common varieties of sedum used in landscape design:
- Sedum prominent- a bush with tall straight stems (up to 60 cm in height), with light green thick leaves. The prominent sedum blooms in September, and throughout the month its flowers, united in baskets of inflorescences, delight the eye with a beautiful pink hue.
Sedum prominent
- Sedum telefium- a perennial shrub with unusually beautiful dark purple leaves. Flowers of red or bright pink color are collected in spectacular thyroid inflorescences.
Sedum telefium
- Sedum compact- a perennial plant characterized by strong stems with gray-green leaves of an oblong ovoid shape. The flowers of this species are white, with a rich aroma.
Sedum compact
- Sedum false- a perennial plant that is very popular among gardeners, due to the fact that its branches form a beautiful covering that serves to decorate carpet beds.
Sedum false
- Sedum acrid- frost-resistant perennial plant. Thickets of sedum form a turf carpet on the soil, which covers the ground all year round - this type of sedum does not lose leaves in the fall. Sedum comes in different varieties, which vary in shape and size, but they all have flowers of an invariably bright poisonous yellow color.
Sedum acrid
- Sedum reflexum(recurving) - a very unusual plant with thick curved stems dotted with densely arranged, needle-like leaves. The plant resembles many strange hairy caterpillars gathered together. And these cute caterpillars form very picturesque mats of green shades, about 20 cm high.
Sedum reflexum
Planting sedum (sedum) in open ground
Sedum is an unpretentious plant, so growing it in open ground is not too troublesome. For planting most plant varieties, you should choose well-lit areas.
Attention! If you plant a light-loving plant in a shaded place, it will lose its attractiveness, the leaves will lose their healthy freshness and fleshiness, the stems will stretch out and become exhausted, and the plant will not bloom.
Light soil with good drainage, without stagnant moisture, is suitable for sedum. If the garden plot has heavy soil with poor water permeability, then it is necessary to prepare a special place in the open ground for planting sedum.
The first thing a sedum needs is a sufficient amount of sunlight.
To do this you need:
- prepare the soil: take sand and humus in a ratio of 3:1 and stir well;
- dig a hole in the ground 20 cm deep, the diameter of which should be approximately 50 cm;
- fill the hole with the prepared mixture;
- plant plants;
- Sprinkle the soil around the seedling with fine crushed stone or gravel.
If everything is done correctly, the sedum will grow and bloom well. The best time to plant sedum is from the second ten days of May to mid-October.
Place fine gravel around the sedum
Reproduction of sedum
You can plant sedum using any of three methods of propagation: seeds, cuttings or dividing the bush.
Propagation by seeds
The seed method can be used in two ways. Simply sow the seeds in the soil at the place of “permanent residence”, in previously prepared soil. The best time for sowing seeds: late April - early May.
Advice! The seeds do not need to be planted very deep into the ground, since the seedlings are very delicate and will not be able to break through a thick ball of earth. It is better to sow them on top of the soil and cover them with a thin layer of sand.
The second method is to plant seedlings in the flower garden. To do this, fill the flower box with a mixture of earth, sand and humus (1:1:2), water lightly, sow the seeds (as mentioned above) and cover with glass or film. When the emerging seedlings have already grown up, they can be transplanted into open ground.
Sedum seeds
Important! You need to know that sedum grown from seed does not bloom in the first summer.
Reproduction by cuttings
To obtain a cutting suitable for planting, any mature sedum stem will do. You need to cut off part of the stem and plant it in a pre-prepared place, deepening it 3 cm into the soil.
Reproduction by dividing the bush
Every 5 years, the sedum needs to be replanted to a new location. It's better to do this in the spring. The plant should be dug up, and the overgrown bush should be divided into 3-4 bushes. Fracture areas must be treated with powdered activated carbon. Dry the bushes for a couple of hours in a dark place and you can plant them.
The culture reproduces painlessly by dividing the bush
Care and fertilization
Although sedum is not a capricious plant, it nevertheless needs care. Young shoots definitely need watering as the soil dries out, but it should be remembered that excess moisture is harmful to them. An adult plant, if the summer is not particularly hot, does not need frequent watering. You need to make sure that there are no weeds around the sedum - it does not like such a neighborhood.
Advice! In the fall, after flowering has stopped, the sedum needs to be pruned - all shoots must be removed. This promotes renewal and rejuvenation of the plant. During the dormant period, if necessary, you need to cover the plant so that it does not freeze.
Sedum should be fed with fertilizers twice a season: before flowering and when the plant has finished blooming. For feeding, you can buy special mineral and organic fertilizers. An aqueous solution of manure with nitrogen is especially useful for sedum. But do not overfeed the plant too much - this reduces its resistance to the negative influences of weather conditions.
Do not overwater the plant, otherwise its roots may rot.
Pests and diseases
Although the sedum does not suffer too much from diseases and pests, there are some that pose a danger to it.
Sedum in landscape design and combination with other plants
Sedum is very decorative, and each variety is interesting in its own way. It is used by gardeners in landscape design to create beautiful compositions. But usually it is planted in combination with other plants to decorate flower beds, rockeries or alpine slides.
Sedum in landscape design
As a single plant, sedum is best planted in groups - this way they look very picturesque. For example: ground cover sedums look gorgeous in individual clearings, where they form large lush carpets.
The borders of flower beds and paths lined with “creeping” sedum look very impressive. Sedums planted in pots look quite beautiful - they can decorate a terrace or staircase or be used as a decorative element of landscape design.
Unpretentious sedum: video
Varieties and varieties of sedum: photos
There are thousands of flowers in the world, each of which is unique in its own way. Some are luxuriously beautiful, others are unusual in appearance, and others are useful. In this large family there is a flower that is unusual, beautiful, and beneficial for health. His name is sedum. Planting and caring for it are very simple, and it can be used where other representatives of the flora refuse to grow. A modest sedum will decorate a stone slope and cover bare places in the garden, turning them into a bright floral carpet.
Description
This plant is popularly called hare cabbage, or fever grass; in the scientific world it is called “sedum”. But it is more familiar as sedum. Planting and caring for it does not cause much trouble. Sedum is a succulent, that is, it accumulates moisture and uses it carefully, which determines the areas suitable for it. These can be rocky slopes, meadows without swamps, or any sunny and dry area. Sedums can be found on all continents except Australia and Antarctica. In Russia they grow everywhere where the winters are not too harsh.
An interesting plant is sedum. Planting and caring for it are determined by its succulence and do not cause difficulties. There are about 650 species of sedums, sometimes so different that it is difficult to determine whether they belong to the same genus. They are annuals, biennials and perennials. The height of plants varies from 5-7 cm to half a meter, less often - up to 80 cm. The stems are erect, creeping, bushy. The color of the leaves is very different - from bright green to dark red, from gray to purple. The shape of the leaves has even more variations. There are round, oval, with a pointed tip, with teeth, flat ones, similar to small branches of a Christmas tree, but all of them are necessarily fleshy, with good turgor. Sedum flowers look beautiful in inflorescences that look like flat umbrellas. The shade range varies from white to red, there are also yellow and blue specimens.
Propagation by seeds and dividing the bush
Sedum is very convenient in gardening. Planting and care, as well as propagation of these representatives of the plant world are the easiest. Gardeners often have a question not “how to propagate sedum,” but “how to prevent its proliferation.” There are three ways to do this process - seeds, cuttings and root division. Seeds can be sown directly into the ground in spring or before winter, as well as in boxes that are covered in a cool room for the winter. Sedum seedlings are miniature. When several true leaves appear on the sprouts, they are transplanted into a flowerbed or pot.
It is important to remember: sedums grown from seeds may differ significantly in appearance from the mother plants.
Bushy varieties are most often propagated by dividing the bush. However, all sedums after 3-5 years of growth in one place should be divided in order to rejuvenate the planting.
Propagation by cuttings
Cuttings are the most convenient method to propagate sedums. Planting and care in open ground is carried out as follows:
- Clear the area of weeds, level it, compact it.
- Place sedum cuttings on the ground (they need to be cut close to the ground).
- Sprinkle with a thin layer of soil (garden soil with sand) and water. It is better to shade such a bed from direct rays of the sun.
Sedums of many types are capable of forming aerial roots. This happens even when drying raw materials prepared for medicinal purposes. A cutting with such roots is simply separated from the mother plant and planted. Sedums are so tenacious that even fairly small fragments of the stem germinate if they find themselves on a suitable piece of land for them.
100% rooting of sedum cuttings within a week is possible in greenhouses with artificial fog. This method is used if you need to obtain a large number of plants.
Another easy way: cut the stems of sedum, choosing powerful and strong ones, and place them on shelves in a room where it is warm and dry. It is better to do this in early autumn. Don't be afraid that all the leaves will fall off these cuttings. In their place, shoots with roots will appear.
Most of all, this method is used for sedum of the prominent, least of all - for sedum of Evers, Siebold.
Care
Although the sedum flower is very unpretentious, planting and caring for it still requires compliance with certain rules. Any soil is suitable for them. Flowers are planted on sandstones, rocky slopes, and loams. With active fertilization, plants may lose their species originality.
Watering is carried out only when the soil is very dry. In wetlands, sedums do not grow at all, as their roots begin to rot.
What sedum requires is the sun, without which it practically does not bloom, and regular weeding. This plant, so resistant to weather conditions, does not know how to cope with weeds at all. And it also doesn’t know how to break through layers of last year’s foliage. Therefore, you need to make sure that they are not covered with tree leaves in the fall.
Sedums have few pests. They can be affected by aphids, caterpillars, and sometimes thrips and weevils. They are controlled by collecting pests manually or using insecticides.
Usage
Sedum flowers are modest and look good only in groups. But this plant has its advantages, which are used in landscape design. Many sedums are groundcovers. They are planted to hide unsightly places in the flowerbed, they are used to create circles around trees, and create original multi-colored lawns. Low-growing species (sedum, white and Lydian) are suitable for this. Tall ones are used to decorate alpine hills, planted in ridges, they are also in demand in border design, when creating rockeries and ordinary flower beds. If you plant several types of sedums nearby, the plants can cross-pollinate so that you end up with something new, completely unexpected.
In addition to decoration, many sedums (caustic, purple, false, white and others) are used as medicinal raw materials in folk medicine. Preparations prepared from them are used for fever, scurvy, hepatitis, cancer, hypertension, epilepsy, atherosclerosis, rheumatism, for healing wounds, removing warts, freckles and calluses.
Sedum Evers
It is distinguished by its decorative foliage and stems, for which it is often used as a ground cover plant without inflorescences. Evers' sedums have very beautiful and somewhat unusual stems with leaves that have a bluish coating. They are shaped like opening roses. The flowers are small, pink, lilac, sometimes with blue, forming umbellate-corymbose inflorescences. To make the Evers sedum pleasing to the eye, planting and caring for it is carried out as follows:
- choose a place that is bright, but without direct sunlight (in bright sun its leaves change color and become smaller, and in the shade the stems become very elongated); in the heat, it is recommended to shade the plant;
- water very sparingly;
- Apply fertilizers (humus) no more than once per season;
- to preserve the decorativeness of the stems, pluck off the inflorescences, and to prolong flowering, pluck off the dry inflorescences;
- before winter, remove the above-ground part, leaving stems up to 5-7 cm high;
- cover in severe winters;
- rejuvenate regularly every 4-5 years.
Evers' sedum grows poorly. It is propagated mainly by cuttings into the ground and dividing the bush. Varieties: round-leaved sedum (stems up to 15 cm, small, pale green leaves, pale pink flowers) and uniform-leaved sedum (low, bluish-green leaves, pink flowers).
Spanish sedum
Used as a ground cover plant in open ground, sometimes planted in pots at home. The stems of this species grow up to 10 cm, the leaves are papillary, their colors are different (green, gray, reddish), the flowers are inconspicuous, whitish-grayish-pinkish. Important feature: Spanish sedum is an annual plant. Planting and caring for it are as follows:
- the place is suitable with any lighting;
- watering only moderately;
- pruning is not performed, since after flowering the plant dies.
Spanish sedum blooms in mid-summer. As a result, a great many seeds fall to the ground, germinating in the same year without the efforts of gardeners. Seeds can also be sown at home. It is advisable to cover young plants in open ground for the winter.
The only variety is Aureum (it blooms rarely and not abundantly, does not tolerate winters well, can grow on hard soil, and is very decorative). Spanish sedum is the name given to the plant Hispanicurrr var. minus, which has beautiful stems of various colors - from green to reddish. It blooms in July, the flowers are not flashy, faded pink.
Sedum purple
This type is universal. It is widely used as an ornamental plant in open ground and at home, and also as a medicinal plant (stimulating, antitumor, wound-healing, regenerating agent). In addition, its young shoots are used for food. Purple sedum is a perennial with erect stems up to 80 cm high and beautiful umbel flowers of various tones (from deep pink to bright purple). Blooms in July-August. To grow purple sedum, planting and care should proceed as follows:
- only sunny places, partial shade is not suitable;
- watering is extremely moderate;
- fertilizers are not needed if the flowers are bright and abundant;
- propagation by dividing the bush or cuttings;
- at home, ensure a period of rest, which means maintaining the temperature in the room with sedum no higher than +16 degrees;
- In open ground, do not prune in the fall and cover it for the winter.
Varieties: Karfunkelsten, Emperor.
False sedum
This species is an aggressive perennial. It is used mainly as a ground cover plant, looks good in alpine hills and rockeries. The rhizomes of false sedum are creeping, and the germination rate of seeds is high. It can be easily propagated by cuttings (by tearing the stem from the mother plant and falling on the ground). Its leaves are fleshy, round or lanceolate, in a variety of colors. The stems are creeping, up to 18 cm long. Flowers (pink, crimson, purple, white) appear already in early summer. False sedum is popular among gardeners; planting and caring for it is very simple. The plant is extremely resistant to dryness, winter-hardy, easy to propagate, and not picky about soil. The only drawback is its aggressiveness, so it is not planted next to delicate species. Varieties: Album and Album superboom (green leaves, white flowers), Erd Blut (reddish leaves, purple flowers), Bronze Carpet (bronze leaves, pink flowers), Tricolor (leaves with white edging).
Caustic sedum
This species is poisonous. Sedum, planting and caring for which differs little from those of other representatives of the genus, is a perennial. In the first year it grows only 5-7 cm and does not bloom. In the second year, the stems stretch up to 10 cm and are densely covered with bright yellow flowers. Propagated by seeds (self-seeding), dividing the bush and cuttings. This sedum does not shed its leaves in the fall and overwinters easily. Since the entire plant is short and its leaves and flowers are small, this is a major disadvantage. Sedum is used in garden design as a ground cover plant, and in medicine it is used to increase hemoglobin, fight diseases and conditions such as cancer, epilepsy, fever, hypertension, and is used as a laxative and to remove warts. A popular variety is Yellow Queen, which has slightly golden leaves.
Sedum prominent: planting and care
A very spectacular perennial with tuberous roots, erect stems up to 50 cm tall, large leaves (oval, jagged along the edge, green-gray or reddish), lush inflorescences of various tones (from pink-lilac to purple-carmine). It blooms late, in September - early October. Varieties: Diamond, Carmen, Variegatum (with variegated yellowish foliage), Iceberg (a very rare variety with lush white flowers that appear as early as August), Neon (pale pink flowers), with reddish powerful stems and reddish foliage at the edges of Matrona sedum. Planting and caring for them are almost the same:
- sunny places, otherwise there will be no flowering;
- moderate watering;
- Any soil, but not heavy, where water stagnation is possible;
- Fertilize only in cases of weak flowering;
- removing weeds, faded inflorescences, dry stems to give the bush a beautiful look.
Sedum propagates more often by dividing the bush and cuttings.
Sedum is quite common and has many modified varieties. Today we will tell you about this plant, the conditions for its normal growth and methods of cultivation.
Sedum, Fever Grass, Hernia Grass, Sedum, whoever called this plant, which has more than 500 species throughout the planet. Apparently, it was precisely because of the huge number of modified colors, which sometimes are not even similar to each other, that such different names appeared.
But in smaller quantities it can be found almost everywhere where there is territory for growth, a temperate climate and bright sunshine.
Sedum is a rather interesting plant, which, in its different types, can be almost unrecognizable. It is a succulent, sometimes an annual or biennial plant, more often a herbaceous perennial, and in some cases, even a low-growing shrub. It has a set of alternate leaves, whorled or opposite, which are collected in round or flat rosettes, serrated at the edges. The flowering is umbrella-shaped, a little less often - single, the color is absolutely varied. Many winter-hardy varieties are known, but there are also those that can only be grown at home.
Growing sedums
Location on the site
Sedum is quite light-loving, with the exception of a few species, but it can easily tolerate light shade. In sunlight, plants take on an interesting, “tanned” appearance and each leaf becomes brighter and juicier. In shading conditions, sedums bloom poorly and grow, sometimes losing their appearance to the point of impossibility. Do not forget that with such a large number of species, there may be some to which reverse measures should be applied. Sedums are resistant to drought, but cannot tolerate autumn leaf fall, since they do not have the strength to break through it to the surface in the spring. Every five years they should be replanted to another place.
Sedum: varieties and care (video)
Soil for sedums
Any of the species is quite unpretentious to the soil and can grow even on a stone base, but if you decide to grow sedum at home or in a summer cottage, then the soil should be fertilized with a small amount of compost or humus. You don’t have to worry too much about loose or dry soil. Many sedums live on sandy soils, in rocky areas, on limestone and even on forest edges, mixed with pine needles on the ground... As you can see, the plant will survive in any conditions. But again, we hasten to remind you that if you start a cultivated sedum at your dacha, it will still need care.
Planting care
Let's start with the winter period. Many types of sedum tolerate winter calmly, but if you cover them a little, that is, insulate them, this will not harm them in any way. In the spring, the plants are unlikely to have a marketable appearance and from their surface it will be necessary to collect leaves, weeds and debris that has accumulated during the cold period of the year.
It is imperative to monitor the degeneration of the crop, which can occur in the third year of planting, but on average, this is about 5-6 years. The plants will need to be transplanted to a new location. Plantings should always be rejuvenated a little, old shoots should be trimmed, and young cuttings should be planted in places where they “fall out.” At this point, the new plants in the "carpet" will need a light fertilizer. Some varieties require flowering pruning if you want to maintain a level landscape.
If the plant takes up space in a flowerbed or rock garden, it should be fertilized at the beginning and end of the season, since due to the many neighbors, sedums do not have time to get enough of the elements necessary for growth and life.
Since sedum has little competition with any weeds, it requires frequent weeding of the soil around it. However, there are also varieties, such as sedum, which easily eradicates weeds around it, so it is very well suited for edging alpine hills and various flower beds.
Plantings should be watered very moderately, that is, practically not watered, unless the summer is too hot or during replanting.
You constantly need to monitor the shoots, which are best cut off before they grow too much; it is also necessary to cut off dried inflorescences and leaves, which only clog the “carpet” and spoil its appearance. Most often this occurs in early spring and autumn.
Reproduction of sedums
Sometimes replanting a plant is simply necessary; this happens when the sedums degenerate in a certain place. Reproduction is possible by seeds, cuttings and dividing the bush.
Propagation by seeds
Sowing of seeds occurs in autumn or spring in small boxes, which are preferably placed in a greenhouse. Sedum seedlings are quite small, so when the first few leaves appear, they are immediately dived into the ground. A young plant may produce color only in the second or third year. You should be very careful with propagation by seeds, since, growing in one area, several varieties can independently hybridize and produce completely unpredictable offspring, so this method is used mainly in breeding.
Cuttings
Apparently, the easiest and fastest way to reproduce sedums. Any shoot or leaf that comes into contact with the ground can take root, so be prepared for the fact that if you drop several parts of the plant on the ground when pruning, they will not disappear, but will germinate. There are times when parts of sedums are carried away by birds or rodents and the plant appears in a place where you never wanted to grow it. But what’s most interesting is that if you plant sedums in the ground in the same way as they grow themselves, after a few days you can find only rotten remains. The right decision when planting would be to develop the area, completely clearing and removing weeds, leveling and compacting the soil. Next, you need to carefully lay out the cut cuttings on the bed and sprinkle them with a layer of garden soil diluted with sand, and lightly compact them. The survival rate of cuttings is measured at 70-100%, depending on the soil, its nutritional value, moisture and proper subsequent care.
Reproduction by divisions
Some species are also propagated by dividing the rhizome. They dig up the plant in early spring, clear the rhizome of soil and divide it so that both roots and buds remain on each part. The cuttings must be treated with a fungicide and the cuttings must be dried for several hours before planting, always in a cool place.
Diseases and pests
Sedums are quite resistant to many diseases However, there are also species that suffer from caterpillars and sawflies. In this case, the plant should be treated with appropriate preparations, and pests should be lured out of the plants onto cabbage leaves or lettuce and destroyed. Sedums can also be affected by a fungal infection; this occurs in damp weather and high humidity. The infection manifests itself as spots on the stems and leaves. Affected shoots should be cut off and burned in a timely manner. Sometimes aphids are found, from which it is possible to save plantings with the help of insecticides. It is advisable to use preparations intended for processing currants; they do not burn the leaves. The crop is also affected by weevils, which can be gotten rid of by “night hunting”. A white cloth or paper is spread under the plant in the dark, and the pests are simply shaken off the plant.
Variety of species
There are more than five hundred species of this plant in the world and many more self-hybridized ones. We will not describe each of the types, for obvious reasons, but will simply list those that the most popular and famous in our country.
- Sedum prominent- an erect plant whose growth reaches 60 cm in height. The leaves are fleshy, light green, the flowers are of various shades of pink;
- Sedum telefium- a beautiful, shorter plant with unusual pink or red flowers and dark purple leaves;
- Sedum Ruby Shine- a hybrid of two types of sedum, tenacious and rocky, with purple leaves and umbellate burgundy flowering;
- Adolf's sedum- an abundant, branched shrub with thick, fleshy and fairly strong leaves of a flat-round shape. The flowering is white, hemispherical, lateral, reaches a length of 12-13 cm;
- Sedum Siebold- a beautiful, herbaceous perennial with round, light green and slightly red leaves at the edges. Most often used as an indoor culture;
- Sedum compact- perennial with strong stems and leaves, oblong-ovate in shape, gray-green in color. It blooms in mid-summer with white flowers with a strong aroma;
- Sedum Linear- a herbaceous, perennial plant that is capable of forming a dense turf, creeping, quickly rooting, with leaves of a light green hue. Flowering is umbellate, yellowish;
- Sedum Steel- height no more than 20 cm, subshrub with few branched shoots, oblong leaves, ovate shape, color from red to brown. The peduncle is leafy, fairly branched, the inflorescence is paniculate, yellow.
Planting sedum and caring for it in the open ground does not take much time and effort from gardeners. Delicate graceful plants are unpretentious, resistant to drought and temperature changes. Their flowering is not lush, but sedums have the ability to emphasize the brightness of roses and the luxury of clematis. Landscape designers form entire compositions from sedums and decorate hedges and alpine slides with them. Single sedums planted in spring quickly grow, forming a variegated flower carpet of various shades interspersed with fresh green leaves.
Growing methods
Most sedums are perennials, but annual and biennial sedums are also found. Despite belonging to succulents, when growing wild, plants prefer to settle in temperate latitudes, away from the scorching rays of the sun, which burn tender stems and leaves. The undoubted advantage of sedums is their high decorative value even in the absence of flowering. Breeders have created varieties with leaves of different color shades. By combining them when planting, you can get an original flowerbed. A multi-level composition made up of sedums of different heights and taking into account the color scheme of representatives of several varieties and hybrids looks great in the garden. It combines ground cover plants and tall sedums well.
These representatives of the extensive Crassulaceae family number about 600 varieties and hybrids, differing from each other in height, growth rate and color not only of flowers, but also of thick, fleshy leaves. All sedums, without exception, combine well with both tall and short plants. They are planted together with early flowering varieties to maintain the high decorativeness of the area after cutting peonies or daisies. The flowering of sedums continues throughout the summer and early autumn, which is used by owners of adjacent areas for decoration:
- garden paths;
- alpine slides;
- garden borders;
- hillsides.
Advice: Sedums should not be grown to form lawns if they are meant to be walked on. The delicate stems will quickly break, and the bushes will have to wait several weeks for recovery.
Sedums of various colors are grown in wide flat pots or elongated containers. The containers are located near terraces, gazebos, and swimming pools. If desired, the pots are swapped, making different compositions.
More than 600 varieties and hybrids of sedums, strikingly different from each other, are described in the botanical literature
Reproduction methods
Propagating sedums does not cause any particular difficulties even for novice gardeners. Before planting, it is worth considering that the joint cultivation of varieties and even some species will cause hybridization and changes in the appearance of plants. They are characterized by cross-pollination, so the original characteristics are not preserved. Gardeners do not have to conduct experiments in selection - new sedums, amazing in their diversity, will still appear in their flower beds every year.
Note: The most famous varieties of sedum are the result of open pollination, and not the crossing of species.
Propagation by seeds
In the southern regions, small seeds are germinated in the spring directly in open ground. Sedum is sowed in middle or northern latitudes in plastic pots or planting containers. To obtain strong seedlings, prepare the soil from equal parts of top peat and fertile soil. During the planting process, the seeds are not buried, but only slightly pressed into the surface of the soil and sprinkled with a thin layer of calcined river sand. The surface of the container is covered with glass or plastic film and the containers are sent to a cool place (temperature about 5°C) for 10-14 days. This is how stratification is carried out, or long-term keeping of seeds in certain conditions to accelerate their germination. When planting in flowerbeds with germination, morning spring frosts will help, and when sowing in small pots, they are placed on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. What is further care?
- Every day the covering from the containers is removed for ventilation and prevention of putrefactive processes, and the accumulated condensate is removed with a napkin;
- Regularly irrigate the soil using a spray bottle;
- Sprouted weeds are constantly removed.
After 2 weeks, the containers are brought into a warm room and cultivation continues at a temperature of about 20°C. Depending on the care and variety, the first shoots of sedum appear in 15-25 days. The formation of 2 leaves on them serves as a signal for diving young plants into separate pots or holes. During relocation, special care is taken, as seedlings are fragile and easily break.
Important: Sedums propagated by sowing seeds bloom only 2-3 years after planting in open ground.
Cuttings
This method is the least labor-intensive, therefore it is most often practiced by gardeners. It is especially easy to propagate by cuttings varieties that are not demanding on the soil and grow well in poor and sandy soils. Such plants form shoots with aerial roots that quickly take root upon contact with the surface of the earth.
This is interesting: Birds and rodents unwittingly take part in reproduction, carrying sedums over quite long distances.
Cuttings of sedums of any variety are cut both in the spring before or after budding, and in the fall after the end of the flowering period. Ten-centimeter pieces of strong shoots are distinguished by the greatest germination. During the cutting process, the lower leaves are removed, and the cuttings are planted as follows:
- spring planting is done directly in flower beds with loose soil, into which any organic matter has been added;
- cuttings cut in autumn are stored in a cool place in a container with water, regularly replacing it with fresh water.
The cuttings are buried into the soil by 1-2 nodes, regularly loosened and watered. To speed up root formation, planting is carried out in frequently ventilated greenhouses. The cuttings begin to grow in 3-4 weeks. During this time, a sufficient number of roots are formed and even the first shoots are formed.
Dividing the bush
This method of propagating sedums also does not take gardeners much time, but it is used only for tall plants. With the onset of stable heat, a large 4-5 year old bush is dug up and cleared of adhering turf and soil. If damaged or rotten roots were found during inspection, they are removed with pruning shears or garden shears, and then powdered with any fungicide. Substances to suppress the activity of pathogenic fungi are also used to treat the surfaces of bushes after dividing them.
A large plant is cut in such a way that large roots and buds remain on each part, from which young shoots emerge. Before planting in flowerbeds, the divisions (planting units) are dried in places protected from direct sunlight. After 5-6 hours, parts of the bushes can be planted in the local area. This method is also used for plant rejuvenation. Gardeners wait for powerful new shoots to form, and gradually cut out the old ones.
Site selection
Sedums are planted in areas that receive sun most of the day. Sedums growing in the shade of tall bushes or trees become excessively elongated and lose their bright color. The lack of sunny color causes poor flowering and frequent root rot. And the leaves that fall from the trees in the fall often lead to the complete death of the plant. In sunny areas, sedums form correctly, and their color scheme is dominated by rich, bright shades. But there are exceptions to the rules:
- prominent and trifoliate sedums tolerate shade well;
- Sedums can quickly die in direct sunlight.
Both annual and perennial plants are unpretentious and produce abundant flower buds even in soil with a low nutrient content. Gardeners and landscape designers take advantage of this feature of sedums and plant them on rocky slopes or sandy areas.
Advice: The Caucasian variety of sedums grows even in calcareous soils, which in no way affects the quality of flowering and the formation of new shoots.
Despite their unpretentiousness, plants are sensitive to regular applications of complex, mineral or organic fertilizers. Planted in fertile garden soil (for example, loam), they quickly begin to grow. In such cases, the sedums are not fed - they increase the voluminous leaf mass, but the flowering leaves much to be desired.
Before planting cuttings or cuttings, carefully dig up the area for the future flower bed, removing the roots and stones remaining in the ground. Depending on the composition of the soil, add:
- high peat;
- river sand;
- leaf humus.
The depth of the holes for cuttings should not exceed 20 cm. This size is quite sufficient for growing sedum roots located close to the surface of the earth. When planting parts of bushes, the depth of the hole corresponds to the length of the rhizome. Sedums, especially groundcovers, grow quickly, so leave 20-25 cm between seedlings. If planting is done in areas where groundwater occurs or moisture often accumulates after rain, then it is necessary to do without drainage, which is used as small pebbles or coarse sand. Gardening work is considered completed after watering the seedlings.
Secrets of proper care
Caring for sedums, as well as planting, do not present any particular difficulties to garden owners. Varietal sedums bred by breeders by cross-pollination of parent plants are considered capricious. This statement is especially true for sedums, the foliage of which is dominated by unusual bright shades: red, pink, yellow, purple. In the absence of quality care, they begin to intensively form ordinary long green shoots, spoiling the appearance of the flowerbed. If the shoots are not regularly removed, the plant will soon become completely green.
Watering
Like all succulents, sedums easily tolerate even prolonged drought. After the first watering, which is carried out while planting cuttings in flower beds, the soil should dry completely. Excessive amounts of moisture negatively affect the condition of the root system. Putrefactive processes develop, quickly spreading to fragile stems and leaves. If it rains regularly and often in the gardener’s region of residence, then watering should be completely abandoned.
Water is applied not under the roots, but near the plant during periods of severe drought. The best time to water is early morning or late evening after sunset. Otherwise, a dense crust will form on the soil, preventing the flow of fresh air. As a rule, for sedums growing in mid-latitudes, 1-2 applications of water during the entire growing season are sufficient.
Flowerbed care
When deciding to plant any variety of sedum on a personal plot, the owner must take into account that the plant needs regular and frequent weeding. Sedums are not able to compete with any weeds due to the fragility of the shoots and lack of shade tolerance. Weeds are pulled out or weeded out 2-3 times a week, especially in the first month of cultivation. Subsequently, such a dense flower carpet is formed in the flowerbed that rarely any other plant manages to break through it. Also, after planting, the soil is regularly loosened to ensure a flow of fresh air to the roots. They lie at shallow depths, so extreme caution is required.
This is interesting: Caustic sedum is able to independently fight weeds. During growth, it releases special organic substances into the environment that negatively affect not only neighboring plants, but also garden pests - insects and rodents.
After the end of the flowering period, the dried inflorescences are carefully torn off. It's necessary:
- to increase the decorativeness of the flower bed;
- for bush rejuvenation;
- to stimulate new bud formation.
Once a week, plants are inspected and dried or rotten shoots, leaves, and flowers are removed. Regardless of the species of sedum, after five years the bushes require rejuvenation. As a rule, it is carried out by dividing the shoots and then rooting the cut cuttings. Sedums form new bushes so quickly that gardeners have to restrain their growth with the help of decorative stones placed around the flower bed.
Feeding
Excessive application of fertilizers, as well as excessive watering, can seriously harm plants. Sedums will respond to fertilizing with abundant flowering, but this will negatively affect endurance. “Overfed” sedums become absolutely defenseless against molds and harmful insects. After flowering, they grow slowly and form buds poorly.
Warning: Excessive fertilization has a bad effect on the frost resistance of sedums. The likelihood of plant death during even mild wintering increases.
For small flowerbeds, a fertilizer designed specifically for succulents would be ideal. They contain nutrients and biologically active substances that allow sedums to:
- optimally increase green mass;
- bloom regularly.
For large plantings of sedum, you can use complex fertilizers that contain mineral and organic compounds. Adding only solutions of peat or manure will have a negative impact on the formation of buds, since the plant will spend all its energy on growing green mass. The best time for the first root feeding is a month before flowering. It will extend the period of bud formation and give the flowers a brighter color. The plants are fed again after 4-5 weeks.
Preparing for winter
With the arrival of cold weather, the long stems of sedums begin to gradually become bare, shedding their leaves. Gardeners sprinkle them with humus and loose soil to preserve them during the long winter. This also promotes the formation of new shoots in early spring and prevents the plantings from completely freezing. If sedums were planted to decorate alpine hills, then the bare stems and shoots are sprinkled with a thin layer of gravel or crushed stone.
Sedums belonging to tall varieties are cut in late autumn, preferably after the first frost, leaving about 3 cm. The procedure does not have any effect on the quality of wintering. You can get rid of dry stems in early spring. But owners of personal plots do not like the look of dead wood in the middle of a snow-covered flower bed.
The following varieties of decorative sedums are considered the most hardy in mid-latitudes:
- false;
- caustic;
- prominent;
- bent;
- white.
And the Lydian and Spanish varieties are given all the conditions for survival when the temperature drops sharply. To do this, flower beds with non-frost-resistant varieties are sprinkled with straw or covered with spruce branches. Fallen leaves are not used - they cake, and even strong, powerful shoots are sometimes unable to break through their thickness.
The winter hardiness of varietal sedums is directly dependent on the frost resistance of the parent plants. For example, white sedum is characterized by a wide growing area, so its hybrids are not afraid of even a strong drop in air and ground temperatures. Gardeners living in middle and northern latitudes prefer high-mountain varieties of sedums. Sedums, whose natural habitat is the southern regions, can suffer or die even with proper preparation for wintering.
Garden pest control
Like all succulents, sedums are very sensitive to fungal diseases. The worse the care of the plant, the higher the risk of invasion of mold microorganisms. If you water excessively, you can say with 100% probability that the fungi will soon destroy the entire flowerbed with sedums. The disease is visualized in the darkening of leaves and stems, their loss of elasticity and firmness. Treatment with drugs with fungicidal activity will not bring the desired result. Blackened plants are uprooted and burned, and the remaining ones are carefully inspected. Only in the absence of visible damage is it advisable to spray the sedum with fungicide solutions.
Recommendation: A fungal infection can affect a flower bed after heavy, frequent rains. In this case, only the above-ground parts of the plants can be damaged. They should be removed and treated with fungicidal preparations.
The invasion of insects into a flower bed with sedums occurs quite rarely, since they are not very attracted to the fleshy stems and leaves. Sometimes the following garden pests crawl or fly from neighboring plants onto sedums:
- caterpillars;
- weevils;
- thrips.
They are especially dangerous for broad-leaved species, such as sedum. It is raided from the end of June to the beginning of August by false caterpillars and real sawflies. Aktelik, a broad-spectrum insecticide, has proven itself well in the fight against these insects. There is an interesting way to save sedums from caterpillars. Gardeners place crushed lettuce or cabbage leaves near the flower beds, and lay pieces of slate or boards on top. All that remains is to destroy the pests gathered for the “treat”.
Weevils and aphids are eliminated using insecticides, spraying the plants and watering the soil underneath them. Excessively concentrated solutions can burn delicate thick leaves. Gardeners use preparations for succulents intended for treating black currants.
