Jewels in Hypertufa
Almost Winter – a beautiful season for my succulents and sedum.
These plants are glowing like jewels in hypertufa. The stress of the cold weather brings out all the colors in sedum, so I feel they are at their most beautiful time period now. These are a few of my planters and troughs this late fall. All of these are hardy outdoor succulents and sedum and the hypertufa troughs and bowls stay outside in the weather and are no worse for the wear. I don’t fuss with them and they all perform well through snow and ice and I expect the same this year. Do you leave your hypertufa outside in winter? I wrote about it here in another post.
Sedum and succulents are known for being the most colorful when they are stressed, and the change in the weather stresses them. The contrast in the colors is more evident at this time. One of your hens and chicks, or sempervivum, may show more red in the tips of the petals, as opposed to an overall green color throughout the summer.
I guess the only thing more beautiful would be in the springtime when you see so many NEW plants coming up around your old ones.
Some of my sedum are herbaceous and they die back in the fall. But they return in the spring with new growth around the roots of the old ones. At this time, they burst forth with more chicks or pups and you know that all your troughs will be full to overflowing.
So don’t give up on a plant that you may not be familiar with at first. Read up on everything you can find so that you don’t toss one just because it has gone dormant for a winter period.
Let’s enjoy our last remaining fall plants before the snow and ice turn everything to formless mounds of white……and then the browns and grays of melting snow. I love the tips and edges of these plants. They are truly jewels in hypertufa because they resemble emeralds and rubies. Ice crystals sparkle like diamonds upon them.
Be sure to visit the Facebook page and show me some pictures of your garden and any hypertufa planters or pots you have made. I would love to see yours. I think we need to celebrate how beautiful these small and almost insignificant plants are in the splendor of their color. Semps and sedum will stay all winter under a blanket of snow and emerge to the warmth of spring and even more beautiful colors. I am anxious for that to happen.
I would love to see some of your hypertufa and get some ideas on new things to make. Won’t you show me some? Here is the current plants in the hypertufa planter I made using a hose storage basket as my hypertufa mold. It currently has some Sedum coral carpet and a “frost dying” mini hosta in it. They have performed well together this year. Check here for the post on how I made this planter. It has been outside since made and is in excellent shape, don’t you think?
The sedum “Coral Carpet” has grown so well in this hypertufa pot. It grows in a sheet and covers and falls in a cascade all down the sides. My daughter pulls some off and plants pieces into new pots. Succulents are plants that keep on giving. She has a spot that is perfect for them. They get full sun but are shielded from the noon rays which are harshest. Happy succulents grow well and multiply. What more could you want of a plant?
Enjoy your jewels! It just gets better and better.
how do I keep hens & chicken alive in the house? I brought an 8″ pot and a slug got into the pot and left his mark. Before I knew it all but about 4 of the have died. Any way to keep the rest of the alive?
The true hens and chicks are made to grow outside all year. They don’t usually do well inside since they need the temperature changes and great sunlight etc. If they are the non-hardy succulents that grow in a rosette shape then they need to be kept free from frost damage. If you removed all slugs, it is possible to revive them, just keeping dry and allowing them all the sun they can get may help them survive. Hope you save them.