Sedum Chocolate Ball - Stonecrop

Sedum 'Chocolate Ball', often called stonecrop, is a small perennial ground cover with dense brown foliage. Its colour is chocolate in spring, gradually warming up under the summer sun with increasingly purple reflections. Its abundance of tiny needle-like leaves forms a beautiful evergreen cushion that colonises the most difficult terrains. Its long stems easily take root in crevices and establish themselves in poor and dry soils, preferably in the sun. Its yellow flowering, in a myriad of stars, is a blessing for insects during August and September.

From the Crassulaceae family, sedums are proof that poor soil can provide a home to beautiful specimens with subtle shades. If your soil is poor, rather dry, even rocky, or even slightly chalky, you can still benefit from these hardy perennials (they withstand temperatures below -15°C (5°F)). They require no maintenance and promise to animate the garden with visits from butterflies. These succulents are easy to grow and have flowers and foliage in various shades that can create multiple palettes, whether in flower beds, containers, or rockeries. They should not be exposed to excess moisture in winter or be covered with dead leaves, as this may cause them to deteriorate. They prefer a sunny, even scorching, exposure, and will thrive in a few millimetres of substrate.

The 'Chocolate Ball' variety has a creeping, yet plump, habit that can spread 30cm (12in) with its stoloniferous stems. They end their course by arching and reach a height of 10cm (4in). They bear small, oblong, tapered, cylindrical and fleshy leaves measuring barely 3 to 5mm. They are alternate and dense. This foliage displays unique and rare colours of brown, chocolate, russet, and purple, with vague reflections of green, hidden in the depths of this carpet. These nuances vary, like most of its cousins in the same genus, depending on climatic conditions: the amount of light and water will either lighten or accentuate its colours. From this little tuft, a bright and delicate flowering emerges. Its inflorescences in miniature corymbs consist of multiple yellow, star-shaped flowers, highly prized by insects that continue to hover over them. They can double the height of this little carpet.

Sedum 'Chocolate Ball' is an asset for greening the corners around the house while offering unique colours. This contemporary plant can create decorative combinations in containers with a modern style. Add pots around the house, on pathways, or along a patio, moving them according to your desires and the seasons. It easily combines with all rockery plants, requires no maintenance, and colonises abandoned spaces. It is also suitable for green roofs. Stonecrops offer a variety of colours and shapes that harmonise with all styles of gardens.