Sedum spectabile Twinkling Star - Autumn Stonecrop

Sedum 'Twinkling Star' is a wide and compact variety of autumn stonecrop, with strong, well-branched stems from the base. It adorns itself with beautiful, slightly faded shades, both soft and melancholic. It is a succulent perennial with fleshy stems. It bears wide inflorescences composed of small mauve-brown buds that gradually open into a myriad of pale-yellow to green star-shaped flowers. These blooms rise above the rounded grey-green and glossy foliage. The whole forms a wide and fluffy tuft, animated by a constant ballet of butterflies. It is a carefree plant, which requires very little maintenance. It gives an indescribable charm to the late season. This plant grows in dry soil. 

The 'Twinkling Star' autumn stonecrop belongs to the Crassulaceae family. It is a recent cultivar derived from Sedum spectabile, which is native to China and Korea. It forms bushy tufts, wider than they are tall, with a slightly spreading habit reaching 45cm (18in) in height and spreading over 60cm (24in). Its growth rate is quite slow. Flowering occurs from September onwards, and stops at the first frosts. The inflorescences, in flat and dense terminal cymes, reach 15cm (6in) in diameter. The tiny flowers emerge as mauve-brown-blue buds, then open into pale yellow-green flowers, sometimes tinged with faded pink. They form false umbels that are intensely nectar-rich and honey-bearing. The thick and fleshy deciduous foliage is ovate, with undulate and crenate margins at the base of the plant. The colour of the leaves is intermediate between grey and green, with tin-like reflections, slightly more purplish on mature leaves. The decorative brown-violet seeds feed birds in winter.

Sedum 'Twinkling Star' is a godsend for gardens where the soil lacks depth. It prefers well-drained, even dry soil. Mix it with stones and walls, with grasses like stipa, and with grey-foliaged plants like artemisias and sea cinerarias, which accept difficult living conditions. You can create an original scene by planting it with autumn asters, gaura, or magellan fuchsias. Its sculptural appearance is magnificent in a pot. Its flowers are also excellent for drying or for fresh bouquets.