Sedum – Time for New Starts

April 18

If you have gardened for any length of time you probably have some form (if not many) of Sedum, also known as stonecrop.

My border would not be complete without lots of it.  Its sun loving (although I have some growing in the shade as well) and drought-tolerant; actually enjoys poor soil and comes in hundreds of varieties in shapes and sizes from tiny to tall. As long as the soil drainage is good, it will make a beautiful presence in your perennial border.

Once you have it – with a few minutes of attention each spring — you should never be without it.

Sedums are among the easiest plants to start from cuttings.  Although you can start your cuttings in flats or pots and transplant where you want them,  I save lots of time by starting themwhere I want them to grow.

I might loose a few cuttings every now and then, but you might loose a few in flats or pots as well. You can always do a grouping of 3 cuttings in the same area if you are worried about some not making it.

Picture #1 – Take cuttings about 3 or 4 inches long and pull of the bottom two leaves.

Picture #2 – I used the thicker of the two stems for a starter plant. (I’ll pull those bottom leaves off.)

Picture # 3 – Pull back mulch and loosen the soil.

Picture #4 – Place cutting in soil up to the remaining leaves.

Picture #5 – Firm soil around cutting.  Water.  (Sometimes I skip watering the cutting if the soil is really moist and if I am expecting more rain soon.)

Picture #6 – Pull mulch up to base of plant.

I figure by starting sedums where I want them to grow I saving time in washing pots or flats, filling them with grow mix, having to keep them watered and then transplanting.  More than an hour saved so that I can do some other things.

And by the way, I prefer cuttings but you can also start sedum by pulling off a nice big leaf and burying a third of it in the ground. Talk about easy!

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