Trifolium Atropurpurea is one of those plants people pass up in the garden center…but shouldn’t! The color and texture of this plant makes it simply a must have in your garden when you want to create a dramatic effect.

The more sun this plant gets, the tighter the foliage and deeper the red tones become. When given shadier conditions, you will see elongation of the foliage and much more pale green tones come out.

 It is extremely easy to keep tight to the ground with a trim every couple of weeks or so. As a matter of fact, the more you trim, the tighter and thicker the foliage becomes. This can be done with a lawn mower or a weed whacker or even by hand in a small area.

Think about it…a red clover lawn. It’s not only environmentally friendly, but simple and easy to maintain!

This plant grows over the soil and under. It is not super fast by any means, but can roam when it likes a spot. This is why you want to put this plant in a container or in a spot that you are comfortable with it being THE plant as the understory. Consider planting it in a bright sunny spot (not hot-just sunny) as an under planting around taller perennials. Show off its bright red tones by incorporating the Trifolium with a gold foliage perennial like a hosta or a heuchera, and then add in some tall, white blooming perennials like a Shasta daisy to make a striking combination. It is also exceptional over spring blooming flower bulbs. The color combinations are endless.

I do hope you will give Trifolium repens Atropurpurea a try this spring…even if it is only to add color to your containers. I know you will be happy with its performance, and I know you’ll love the dramatic effect it will have in your landscape.

Until next time…go get dirty!

Fran

www.stepables.com

Sedum album Coral Carpet

Are you tired of plants that underperform?

Do you want a plant that continues to change and grow as your landscape does? Want a plant that is evergreen, deters weeds, changes colors with the seasons, can be walked on a ton and blooms???

Then Sedum album Coral Carpet is your plant!  I love this little gem!

The pictures that you see are of the corner vignette in my yard. I look out at this point literally hundreds of times a day from inside my kitchen. It is exactly THE focal point from inside my house, so naturally it needed to have quite the “WOW” factor when I designed it.

Picking a plant to be the finishing touch in this area was imperative to the look and feel of this particular corner throughout the year. Does it have winter color? What does it look like in early spring? How does it look in its full summer glory and what does it feel like in fall?

As my landscape shifted and grew to “morph” into its full splendor, so too did my sedum.

It not only filled in within 3 months, but the metamorphosis of this plant has completely floored me. As my lovely little corner has filled in, my Coral Carpet has been an absolute delight to watch. I simply had no idea it was this good of a plant. We have shot numerous TV segments on this plant and you will see it being singled out as a true beauty in future articles in many national magazines.

When I started STEPABLES®, the hunt was on to find plants that solved landscape dilemmas. We have over 150 plants now in our program. I can honestly say that Sedum Coral Carpet rides all the way to the top for me. I loved its tenacity in the landscape to choke out weeds. I love that it makes me feel like every month I have a new plant on the ground. From the dark red color of the foliage in dead of winter to the absolutely lush green look in spring and then wowing me again by changing to maroon in fall. I have never seen a plant morph as much as this one does throughout the year.

AND…I loved the flowers! Wow–were they cool…even when they were done blooming they were awesome!

Okay…yes, I might be a little carried away with this plant…but come on!!!

As a plant hound, we search for plants that have it all. It is our quest to find the supernova of plants. Well my friends…I believe this one little sedum is it for me. It’s not as cool as a new Heuchera and certainly not as mouthwatering as one of those new Echinacea. HOWEVER… being down and dirty, tried and true can sometimes be the most rewarding.

This plant scores 100% in my book for performance, beauty and all around usefulness. Sometimes, just sometimes, it’s not what’s new that should be what drives sales, but what works. Sedum Coral Carpet does it for me…and I hope it does it for you too!

When you begin gardening this spring…make Sedum Coral Carpet a must as one of the first plants you buy. Please write me and tell me how you like it. I would love to hear what all of you think of it!

Now go get dirty out there!

Fran