Sedum 'Autumn Joy'
Hylotelephium 'Herbstfreude' · Crassulaceae Popular
Succulent blue-green stems topped with broad flower heads that shift from pale green to pink to rusty red. The dried heads stand up well through winter.
- 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 Joy'
The planner designed this bed around sedum 'Autumn Joy' 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 Joy' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Sedum 'Autumn Joy' × 3, pink
- 2 Moor grass 'Greenlee' × 5, tan
- 3 Cheddar pinks 'Firewitch' × 11, pink
- 4 Italian bugloss 'Dropmore' × 5, blue
- 5 Little bluestem 'Standing Ovation' × 3, tan
- 6 Silver sage × 1, silver leaves
- 7 Star of Persia × 2, purple
- 8 Lady tulip × 12, red
Why this plant
- The only flat plates. The others are spires, airy sprays, plumes and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
Why here
- At the back. At 24 in it is seen over moor grass 'Greenlee' (12 in) in front of it, and has nothing behind it to hide.
- A step in the back row. Next to Italian bugloss 'Dropmore' (4 ft) and little bluestem 'Standing Ovation' (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 three weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
Planned as an English border: 5 of the 6 groups (83%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The bold leaves of silver sage are set against the fine leaves of Cheddar pinks 'Firewitch', the kind of contrast that keeps a bed from blurring. Heights step up from about 10 in at the front to 3½ ft at the back.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 3 Good, 1 Satisfactory. 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 Joy' 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.
It earns its place in four seasons: blue-green buds like broccoli, flat pink heads, rust seed heads, then a winter skeleton. The flat flower head is a good contrast to spires and grasses. Rich soil makes it flop.
- Autumn colour and winter seed heads
- Dry, sunny beds
- Late nectar for butterflies
What to plant with sedum 'Autumn Joy'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- 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.
- Blue fescue: its blue-green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; fine leaves against its bold ones; low enough (10 in) to stand in front of it.
- Little bluestem: its blue-green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; fine leaves against its bold ones; happy in the same dry soil.
Questions about sedum 'Autumn Joy'
Does sedum 'Autumn Joy' need sun or shade?
Sedum 'Autumn Joy' 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 Joy' 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 Joy' 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 Joy' be planted?
24 in (60 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is about its full width, so each plant keeps its own outline.
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 Joy' plants do I need?
At 24 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 3 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 6 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 10 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 Joy' 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 Joy'?
Sedum 'Autumn Joy' is not native to North America. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Ironweed 'Iron Butterfly': the same job in a bed and the same flowering time; 8 in taller, purple, not pink.
- Autumn sage: the same job in a bed and the same colour; 6 in taller, flowers mid May to mid October.
- Texas hummingbird mint: the same job in a bed and the same colour; 8 in taller, 8 in narrower.
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 Joy'?
Sedum 'Autumn Joy' 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 Joy' look like in winter?
Sedum 'Autumn Joy' dies down, but leave the stems standing: the seed heads stand through the winter. Cut them down in early spring, before the new shoots come.
More Hylotelephium
- October daphne Hylotelephium sieboldii
- Sedum 'Autumn Fire' Hylotelephium 'Autumn Fire'
- 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
- 24 in (60 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.