Fall is upon us, and we are starting to see color changes in the landscape. Now is the time of year when greenhouses and nurseries, along with big-box stores, are flooded with chrysanthemums! Mums are great for fall décor and stand out as a wonderful container plant on porches. Unfortunately, mums can be a little bit challenging to overwinter.

If you want a low-maintenance, show-stopping, fall-blooming, reliable, hardy plant for our great state, select sedum! 

Sedums, also known as stonecrop, are part of the succulent family, and many varieties are zone 3 – perfect for our northern gardens. They have thick, fleshy succulent leaves and stems. Sedum comes in creeping and tall/upright forms that work well in garden beds. 

Creeping sedum tends to grow 4 to 6 inches tall and spread easily. They are great for groundcovers, as they can handle poor soil. You will find a range of colors from bright gold to a deep purple. Varieties to consider for your garden are Angelina, Voodoo and Boogie Woogie. Angelina has a vibrant lime foliage that turns orange in the fall. Voodoo has deep burgundy foliage and small, bright pink flowers. Boogie Woogie has variegated green-and-white foliage and produces yellow flowers.

Upright sedums grow from 1 to 2 feet tall and can make a great focal point in any garden. Bloom colors range from white, antique pink, lavender or yellow. Newer sedum varieties have stiff stems, preventing them from flopping over. You will see stem and foliage colors including purple, dark red and variegated. 

Some upright varieties to consider are Autumn Joy, Thunderhead, Double Martini and Mojave Jewels Sapphire. Autumn Joy is the most popular tall sedum for northern gardeners with green foliage and pink flowers. Thunderhead features dark green foliage that turns burgundy in the fall, with deep pink flowers. Double Martini has olive-green foliage with maroon stems and pink flowers. Mojave Jewels Sapphire is a unique sedum with dusty blue-purple foliage with antique pink flowers.

Sedums are a fantastic pollinator plant, and upright sedums are a great source of food for our pollinators in the fall.

For more information about sedums, contact your local NDSU Extension agent. Find the Extension office for your county at www.ndsu.edu/agriculture/extension/extension-county-offices.

By Kelsey Deckert, horticulture agent, NDSU Extension Burleigh County