Autumn Joy Sedum Stonecrop Plants
The one perennial that earns its keep from spring rosette to frost-killed seedhead — and asks for almost nothing in return.
The short version
'Autumn Joy' sedum (Hylotelephium 'Herbstfreude', long sold as Sedum) is a hardy, drought-tolerant stonecrop for USDA zones 3–9 that grows 18–24 inches tall and wide. Its broccoli-like flower heads open green in summer, blush soft pink in late summer, and deepen to rusty rose-red by fall, drawing bees and butterflies the whole way. Give it full sun and lean, fast-draining soil, water sparingly, and leave the dried seedheads standing for winter structure. The only real failure is overwatering or too-rich soil, which makes the stems flop. In my zone 7b clay it's one of the most forgiving perennials I grow.
