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Sedum dendroideum (Tree Sedum) - Although the epithet and common name imply this plant to be a tree, it is actually a small shrub. This particular form grows to 1 to 3 feet tall spreading to 3 to 4 feet wide and rooting along stems to form a large low mass but though we do grow a larger form called Sedum praealtum that is often listed as a subspecies of Sedum dendroideum (S. dendroideum ssp. praealtum). Both plants have clusters of small vivid yellow star-like flowers that form above the foliage in late winter and early spring.
Plant in full sun to part shade in a well-draining soil and water infrequently to not at all in coastal gardens. Frost hardy to the mid 20s F and useful in USDA zone 9 and above. This is a nice plant for the dry garden that has flowers that attract bees and other pollinating insects. It is an attractive shrub and useful as a low succulent drought resistant border plant. It is a great drought tolerant small shrub with nice foliage color and cheery yellow spring flowers. Useful in street medians and other locations where a low growing, low maintenance, drought resistant plant is needed and the flowers are attractive to bees and other pollinating insects.
Sedum dendroideum is native to a wide range of habitats throughout much of Mexico from the state of Chiapas in the south north through Oaxaca, Veracruz, Puebla, Tlaxcala, Hidalgo, Mexico City, and Michoacan. The name for the genus comes from the Latin word 'sedo' meaning "to sit," in reference to the manner in which some species attach themselves to stones or walls. The specific epithet means "tree-like" or "resembling a tree". Other common names include Tree Stonecrop and False Hens-and-chickens.
Sedum dendroideum is a plant in the Pachysedum group of the genus, one of 22 subdivisions within the genus Sedum that the German botanist Alwin Berger created and that American botanist Robert Clausen expanded upon. This group includes more than 90 closely related tender succulent species from North America that appear to be more closely related to Echeveria, Pachyphytum and Graptopetalum than to plants in other sections in Sedum. Unlike these other Sedum that produce terminal inflorescences on the stem, plants in this group have lateral inflorescences. This selection of the species came to us from the Huntington Botanic Garden as accession number HBG 21756 and was received by them from Reid Moran (RM 14795) in May 1968 from material collected in Mexico at La Cañada in the state of Querétaro. We have grown it since 2017.
The information displayed on this page about Sedum dendroideum is based on our research conducted about this plant from books in our nursery library as well as from information that is provided by reliable online resources. We also have included our own observations made about it as it grew in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant performed in the containers when we had them in our nursery field. We also include comments received from others and welcome hearing from anyone who has information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information aiding others to better grow it.
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