Late spring/early summer interest. create containers with all year interest.

Taken in April, ‘Silver Roses’ dangles pleasingly in this all seasons planter.

Purple and silver tones work well with vintage terracotta.

Stunning contrast with Sedum reflexum ‘Blue Cushion’ in late May.

Here ‘Cherry Tart’ lives up to its name in late May

‘Pink Pompelo’ in May. Her chicks are nearly adult.

In response to the warmer days colouration is intensified.

Achieved using Sempervivum ‘Chocolate Kiss’ and Sedum spathifolium ‘Cape Blanco’. Picture taken early June.

By mid July, the Delosperma are in full swing, usually covered in bees.

If you want to encourage butterflies, always include flowering sedums. This converted gas canister is about to explode with flowers late summer.

Photographed mid September, this vintage bucket still has blooms yet to appear from Sedum ‘Dazzleberry’.

Sedum ‘Coral Reef’ becomes deep copper by late September.

The Jelly Bean Sedum manages to have several colours all at the same time. Such a clever plant. 

In the depths of winter the hardy evergreen sedums and sempervivums take centre stage. Growth has stopped, but these two groups of plants give all year interest to any container. Photo taken mid Jan shows Sedum ‘Silver Roses’ and sempervivum ‘Purple Quartz’. 

To achieve evenly distributed all year round interest, it’s important to imagine the planter/scheme in the depths of winter. Whilst flowering sedums look wonderful April to September, by November they have died back. They will return of course, but until they do what else will there be in the planting scheme to look at? This photo was taken mid Jan and shows Sedum ‘Coral Reef’ in all its winter glory. Still holding red tones and working well with the sempervivrum.

In January the combination of Sedum’ Gold Mound’ and sempervivumH ‘Chocolate Kiss’. 😁

The soft feminine edges of Sedum spathulifolium ‘Purpureum‘ alongside the needles shaped leaves of Sedum ’Gold Mound’. Photo mid Jan.

Winter sharpens tonal difference.

Hardy to -20 degrees, sempervivums adapt happily to a severe frost.

This picture was taken on 7th February after a week of freezing temperatures. Sedum ’Atlantis’ has started to re-emerge showing the exquisite fresh buds coming through.

Sedum ‘Cape Blanco’ completely unaffected after being frozen!

A hanging basket , left outside all winter. A pink metal lampshade, filled with  ‘hispanicum’, ‘Coral Carpet’ and ‘Reflexum’. A subtle scheme for the pink container and sand macrame. Photo taken in Suffolk end of Feb.

A top up of fresh grit allows the new growth to shine. Top left ‘Gold Nugget’. These planters were left outside with zero protection all winter.

Photo taken 14th March here in Suffolk, Sedum rubrotinctum and Sedum ‘Coral Reef’ are responding to a warm spring day by intensifying their tones. This planter was left outside without any protection. 

Photo taken mid March here in Suffolk. The  ‘Big Sam Series’  sempervivum ‘Pink Pompelo’  is filling out nicely in this 35cm wall pot. soon her and her chick will be reaching the sides and will make a most eye catching planter.