Autumn Joy Sedum
Here’s and old favourite late-bloomer to add a slash of red to your garden when all other colours are starting to fade. The perennial ‘Autumn Joy’ Sedum, is a versatile, clump forming herbaceous Stonecrop. It will die down in the winter, only to be replaced with pale green, sprout-like growths that mature into tall stalks of the same colour with succulent leaves.
For much of the year, the flower head is a brack of green, simliar in appearance to Calabrese Broccoli, which turns to a deep red/brown colour in early Autumn. Certain varieties of Autumn Joy, flower in shades of yellow, pink and orange and some with variegated leaves.
Autumn Joy: care & propagation
Like other sedums, they prefer a well drained soil – a mulch of grit around the base of the plant should not only stop the growing stems from rotting, but also look attractive. I tend to split my sedum clumps every few years to encourage fresh growth and, of course, to make more plants.
Sedums are quite tough, so don’t be afraid to dig them up in the Autumn and break up the root system. It is a good idea to divide them from the centre of the clump, where there is little new growth, either by hand or with a spade.
Where to grow your sedum
Although Autumn Joy wouldn’t look out of place in a rockery, I think, due to it’s growing height (25-35 cm) and the span of the flower blooms (6-9 cm), it is well suited in a mixed border. They can be grow in full sun (preferred) or partial shade and are generally trouble free and pretty drought tolerant.
When to plant Autumn Joy
As with many plants, Autumn Joy as best planted during Spring, whilst the temperatures and low and the rainfall high to give the plant the best chances of developing a good root system. It’s a good idea to add a little mix of grit and organic matter to get things off to a good start and improve drainage.