Garden Tip 92:

The latter part of July and the month of August are typically dry months here on the Cape. This year, to date, we are already running a deficit of nearly five inches of rain, making gardening a bit challenging during these summer months!

Sedums are a group of plants to consider using for these dry times. They are dependable, versatile, drought tolerant, showy and attractive to pollinators. I have established a sedum garden in our front bed that is in poor soil, full sun and right next to the road and it puts on a spectacular display every year. For upright plants I have used Sedum ‘Matrona’ which is attractive all summer long with its grey green leaves with purple veins and purple stems. I have mixed those with Sedum ‘Autumn Fire,’ a strong plant with grey green foliage. Both of these varieties will flower in late summer into fall with Matrona in pale pink and Autumn Fire in brick red.

Below these upright varieties I have planted creeping sedums, also known as stonecrops. I have planted four or five varieties with foliage of greens and grays. There are over four hundred varieties of creeping sedums and their foliage comes in shades of bronze, green, grey, and gold, as well as variegated forms with pink, white, red and yellow.  Creeping sedums flower in mid-summer in shades of yellow, pink and white. Sedums are a true garden performer and work well in tough spots and dry times.