Delosperma Desert Dancers Purple - Ice Plant

The Delosperma Desert Dancers 'Purple' is a new cultivar of delosperma that offers intensely colored evergreen foliage. Dense, compact, and succulent, it is green in spring and heavily tinted with deep purple in summer. The purple flowers with small yellow centers bloom relentlessly in summer, even in hot and intense sunlight. This warm-climate perennial forms a well-rounded, neat cushion and gradually spreads into wide colorful carpets, even in dry and poor soil, in borders, containers, and green roofs.

The Delosperma belongs to the family of Aizoaceae. Cousins of Mesembryanthemum, they are perennials native to South Africa, East Africa, and Madagascar, perfectly suited for hot and dry climates. They can be planted between stones, paving slabs, or on a dry slope, as long as they find some substrate. The 'Desert Dancers' series offers a classic hardiness for a delosperma, around -10 to -12°C, in well-drained soil. If your region experiences such or lower temperatures, place it in a pot or container that you can bring indoors during winter.

The Desert Dancers 'Purple' Purslane has trailing, branching stems that easily root, colonizing the space with a width that can reach 70 cm, or even 1 m under favorable conditions. They bear small, succulent, dark green cylindrical leaves in spring. These leaves are sessile, fleshy, warty, and measure about 3 cm. In summer, the foliage becomes heavily tinted with deep purple. It forms a small tiller 10 to 15 cm in height that becomes covered in flowers grouped in cymes. Each flower has a corolla of fine ligules colored rose-violet, surrounding a yellow eye. The flowering period extends over a long time, bringing vibrant colors to neglected areas.

The Delosperma Desert Dancers 'Purple' thrives in a very sunny exposure, above walls, in rockeries, or in pots on the terrace or balcony. Its trailing growth cascades from a hanging basket that you can bring indoors during winter if necessary. It is an excellent rockery plant. It pairs well with Sedums, Dianthus, Osteospermum, and Wall Bellflowers. Alternatively, plant it as a evergreen ground cover with plants that have similar needs, such as Stachys or Valerian. Containers composed of different varieties allow you to create a dense, highly colourful foliage carpet for long months with minimal maintenance.