Sedum 'Autumn Fire'
Hylotelephium 'Autumn Fire' · Crassulaceae
An improved 'Autumn Joy' with thicker stems that do not flop and denser, rose-pink flower heads that age to coppery red.
- Size
- 24 in tall, 24 in wide
- Zones
- 3 to 9
- Light
- Full sun
- Flowers
- Mid August to mid October
- Pets
- Toxic to people
- Job in a bed
- Drift
A bed built around sedum 'Autumn Fire'
The planner designed this bed around sedum 'Autumn Fire' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 715 that suit those conditions and its dry soil, and says below why sedum 'Autumn Fire' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Sedum 'Autumn Fire' × 3, pink
- 2 Winter heath × 7, white
- 3 Cheddar pinks 'Tiny Rubies' × 14, pink
- 4 False sunflower 'Summer Nights' × 3, yellow
- 5 Little bluestem × 3, blue-green leaves
- 6 Sea kale × 1, white
- 7 Ornamental onion 'Purple Sensation' × 4, purple
- 8 Hyacinth 'Delft Blue' × 8, blue
Why this plant
- The only flat plates. The others are bells, open bowls, daisies and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
Why here
- At the back, and only just seen. At 24 in it is about the height of sea kale (24 in) in front of it.
- A step in the back row. Next to ornamental onion 'Purple Sensation' (2½ ft) and false sunflower 'Summer Nights' (3½ ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- 3 plants in one group. Massed, one kind reads as a single shape. Scattered, it would look spotty.
Why now
- In flower for 9 weeks. From mid August to mid October.
- Closes the season. For its last five weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
Planned as an English border: 4 of the 6 groups (67%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. Winter heath is the first into flower, in late January, and sedum 'Autumn Fire' the last to finish, in mid October. The most in flower at one time is 3 kinds, from late May.
The planner's own design check: 12 Excellent, 5 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where sedum 'Autumn Fire' goes in a border
At 24 in it belongs in the middle of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is medium short (18 to 24 in).
Its job: drift. Planted in a small group of three or five, and repeated further along in the other number.
Use it wherever 'Autumn Joy' splits open in the middle. Like all border sedums it flowers best, and stands best, in poor, dry soil.
- A sturdier substitute for 'Autumn Joy'
- Autumn colour and winter structure
- Mass planting
What to plant with sedum 'Autumn Fire'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Black-eyed Susan: in flower together for six weeks, from mid August; medium leaves against its bold ones.
- Russian sage: in flower together for five weeks, from mid August; fine leaves against its bold ones; tall enough (4 ft) to stand behind it.
- Dwarf fountain grass 'Hameln': in flower together for six weeks, from mid August; fine leaves against its bold ones.
Questions about sedum 'Autumn Fire'
Does sedum 'Autumn Fire' need sun or shade?
Sedum 'Autumn Fire' grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day).
It wants dry, sharply drained soil, on the lean side, with no feeding, and little watering once settled.
What zones does sedum 'Autumn Fire' grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 9. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does sedum 'Autumn Fire' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers mid August to mid October. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 3 | Late August to mid October |
|---|---|
| Zone 4 | Late August to mid October |
| Zone 5 | Mid August to mid October |
| Zone 6 | Mid August to mid October |
| Zone 7 | Early August to mid October |
| Zone 8 | Early August to mid October |
| Zone 9 | Early August to mid October |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should sedum 'Autumn Fire' be planted?
18 in (45 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 24 in (60 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 24 in (60 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many sedum 'Autumn Fire' plants do I need?
At 18 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 5 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 7 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 17 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as a group of three or five, with a second group further along in the other number.
In the bed above, the planner used three in one group.
Is sedum 'Autumn Fire' poisonous?
Yes: mild toxicity to people. May cause mild stomach upset if eaten.
Rated from NC State Extension. Where references disagree, the more cautious rating is used.
Is there a native plant like sedum 'Autumn Fire'?
Sedum 'Autumn Fire' is not native to North America. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Yarrow: the same job in a bed, the same size and the same colour; flowers mid June to late August, fine leaves, not bold.
- Texas hummingbird mint: the same job in a bed and the same colour; 8 in taller, flowers mid July to early October.
- Tennessee coneflower: the same job in a bed, the same size and the same colour; flowers mid June to late August, fine leaves, not bold.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
What flowers after sedum 'Autumn Fire'?
Sedum 'Autumn Fire' is over by mid October. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Japanese onion 'Ozawa': from early October to early November, 10 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Tatarian aster 'Jindai': from early October to early November, 4 ft tall.
- Bodnant viburnum 'Dawn': from early November to late December, 10 ft tall.
What does sedum 'Autumn Fire' look like in winter?
Sedum 'Autumn Fire' dies down, but it is grown for autumn colour and winter structure, so leave it standing until early spring.
More Hylotelephium
- October daphne Hylotelephium sieboldii
- Sedum 'Autumn Joy' Hylotelephium 'Herbstfreude'
- Sedum 'Frosty Morn' Hylotelephium erythrostictum 'Frosty Morn'
- Sedum 'Lidakense' Hylotelephium cauticola 'Lidakense'
- Sedum 'Matrona' Hylotelephium 'Matrona'
- Sedum 'Purple Emperor' Hylotelephium telephium 'Purple Emperor'
- Sedum 'Vera Jameson' Hylotelephium 'Vera Jameson'
- Showy stonecrop 'Brilliant' Hylotelephium spectabile 'Brilliant'
- Showy stonecrop 'Neon' Hylotelephium spectabile 'Neon'
In these guides
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8 · Zone 9
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 24 in (60 cm) tall, 24 in (60 cm) wide
- Plant
- 18 in (45 cm) apart
- Height class
- Medium short (18 to 24 in)
- Place in the bed
- Middle
- Flowers
- Mid August to mid October; flat plates; pink
- Leaves
- Bold texture, herbaceous; blue-green
- Shape
- Upright, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 9
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil
- Lean, dry and sharply drained
- Water
- Low
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Crassulaceae
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.