Dark purple leaves come up on this upright stonecrop in spring and keep their color through the season. Sedum Rock 'N Grow® 'Midnight Velvet' grows 22 to 26 inches tall and 30 to 32 inches wide in full sun, hardy from Zone 3 through Zone 9, and fills out by its second or third summer.
Rose red flowers open over the dark foliage in late summer and last into fall, a dark-on-dark pairing that makes the plant rich in color rather than bright. Because the purple starts in spring, the plant has color for months before the flowers arrive.
Upright stonecrop comes from species native to the meadows and rocky hillsides of East Asia and Europe, and the thick, waxy leaves store enough water to carry the plant through heat and dry spells. Flower heads form in midsummer as tight green buds, then open in late summer and fall, a time when few other perennials are in bloom, and bees and butterflies come to them for nectar. The stems die back in winter and new shoots come up from the crown in spring, but left standing, the dried stems and heads keep their shape through winter. Rich soil and heavy watering make the stems soft, so the plant splays open in the middle; lean, well-drained ground keeps it tight.
It shows best beside silver, chartreuse or blue-gray foliage in a sunny spot; against dark mulch the leaves can disappear.
