Woodland stonecrop
Sedum ternatum · Crassulaceae
A native sedum for shade: creeping stems of small, rounded leaves in threes, with sprays of starry white flowers in spring.
- Size
- 4 in tall, 12 in wide
- Zones
- 4 to 8
- Light
- Part sun to shade
- Flowers
- Late April to late May
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Carpet
A bed built around woodland stonecrop
The planner designed this bed around woodland stonecrop when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) naturalistic planting in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why woodland stonecrop stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Woodland stonecrop × 42, white
- 2 Bleeding heart 'King of Hearts' × 8, pink
- 3 Blue wood aster × 3, lavender
- 4 Korean feather reed grass × 1, pink
- 5 Gray's sedge × 4, green
- 6 Tassel fern × 3, dark green leaves
- 7 Snowdrop × 5, white
Why this plant
- Part of the matrix. The low fabric of grasses and groundcovers that the taller plants come up through.
- The only dense clusters. The others are bells, daisies, plumes and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
Why here
- Under the taller plants. It runs back between them as living mulch: there its job is to cover the soil, not to be looked at.
- 42 plants in 6 groups (21, 5, 5, 5, 4 and 2). Seen again further along, the same plant ties the bed together.
Why now
- In flower for five weeks. From late April to late May.
- Fills a gap. For two of those weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
Planned as a naturalistic planting: low grasses and groundcovers, the matrix, make up 49% of the planted ground. Bleeding heart 'King of Hearts' flowers longest, for 18 weeks. Woodland stonecrop is planted in six places along the bed, which gives it rhythm.
The planner's own design check: 12 Excellent, 4 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 woodland stonecrop goes in a border
At 4 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is ground-hugging (up to 6 in).
Its job: carpet. A groundcover planted in threes and fives to cover the soil: along the front, and just behind it.
The sedum for shade and moisture, where the others fail. It creeps over rocks and logs in a woodland garden without smothering anything.
- Groundcover for shady rocks and logs
- Native woodland gardens
- Shady green roofs
What to plant with woodland stonecrop
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Foamflower: in flower together for five weeks, from late April; spires rising out of its mound; tall enough (10 in) to stand behind it.
- Wild ginger: its green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; bold leaves against its fine ones; happy in the same moist soil.
- Christmas fern: its dark green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; tall enough (20 in) to stand behind it.
Questions about woodland stonecrop
Does woodland stonecrop need sun or shade?
Woodland stonecrop grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun), part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning) and shade (less than 2 hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does woodland stonecrop grow in?
USDA zones 4 to 8. It is hardy to zone 4, which means it survives winter nights down to about −20 °F (−29 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does woodland stonecrop flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers late April to late May. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 4 | Early May to late May |
|---|---|
| Zone 5 | Late April to late May |
| Zone 6 | Mid April to mid May |
| Zone 7 | Mid April to early May |
| Zone 8 | Early April to early May |
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 woodland stonecrop be planted?
8 in (20 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 12 in (30 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 4 in (10 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many woodland stonecrop plants do I need?
At 8 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 27 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 16 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 86 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as threes and fives, along the front and just behind it.
In the bed above, the planner used 42 in six groups.
Is woodland stonecrop poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Do deer eat woodland stonecrop?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
What flowers after woodland stonecrop?
Woodland stonecrop is over by late May. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Lady's mantle: from late May to early July, 18 in tall.
- Astilbe: from late June to mid July, 24 in tall.
- Carpathian bellflower 'Blue Clips': from late June to late August, 8 in tall.
What does woodland stonecrop look like in winter?
Woodland stonecrop holds some of its leaves into winter, more in a mild year or a sheltered spot, and they look tired by March. Cut the old ones off as new growth starts.
Is woodland stonecrop good for bees and butterflies?
Woodland stonecrop is visited by pollinators, butterflies and songbirds.
It is native to the United States and Canada.
More Sedum
- Goldmoss stonecrop Sedum acre
- Russian stonecrop Sedum kamtschaticum
- Sedum 'Angelina' Sedum rupestre 'Angelina'
- Sedum 'Blue Spruce' Sedum reflexum 'Blue Spruce'
- Sedum 'John Creech' Sedum spurium 'John Creech'
- Sedum 'Tricolor' Sedum spurium 'Tricolor'
- Tasteless stonecrop Sedum sexangulare
- White stonecrop 'Coral Carpet' Sedum album 'Coral Carpet'
In these guides
- Plants for dry shade
- Deer-resistant plants for shade
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Native perennials for pollinators
- Native plants for shade
- Garden plants native to Canada
- Plants for butterflies
- Plants that feed garden birds
- Low plants for the front of a border
- Groundcover plants
- Plants for a white garden
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial (groundcover)
- Size
- 4 in (10 cm) tall, 12 in (30 cm) wide
- Plant
- 8 in (20 cm) apart
- Height class
- Ground-hugging (up to 6 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Late April to late May; dense clusters; white
- Leaves
- Fine texture, semi-evergreen; green
- Shape
- Mat-forming, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 8
- Light
- Part sun, part shade, shade
- Soil
- Average, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Crassulaceae
- Comes from
- South East Canada and Eastern United States
- Attracts
- Pollinators, butterflies, songbirds
- Stands up to
- Deer, drought, poor soil
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.