Sempervivum 'Silver King' - Hens and Chicks

Sizes available: 2 quart

Basics: zones 3-8, 4-6" x 8-12", full sun to light shade, light pink blooms in early summer, the fleshy leaves are a somewhat silvery green with the centers of the rosettes turning red in cooler weather, good drainage is a must, very drought tolerant

Common names: Hens and Chicks, Houseleeks

Family: Crassulaceae

Origin/Distribution: the species are found in mountainous and alpine regions in Europe and Turkey

Habitat: Rocky, well-drained places like in between rock, the cracks in wall, rocky scree

More: good in the sunny rock garden, a container, or a xeric border edge. A vigorous grower, lots of offsets (the "chicks" of "Hens and Chicks"). These babies can be removed from the mother plant and re-potted or placed in a shallow depression in the soil and most will root. Classic pass-along plant.

Hardy succulents can withstand temperatures to -20. They are happy dormant and covered with snow. However, in winters with fluctuating temperatures and lots of winter wet, they have trouble coping. Drainage, and being allowed to dry out before getting wet again, are keys to happiness. Sempervivums are monocarpic. This means that after they make their unusual and quite beautiful flower stalks, the mother plant will die. However, the small offsets surrounding the larger, central rosettes, the "chicks" of the common name, Hens and Chicks, will grow on.

Source: Van Berkum

Image credits: Honey Petal Plants: potted plants of 'Silver King' on the nursery, with raindrops