Sempervivum ‘Purple Beauty’ 1Gal

Latin Name: Sempervivum tectorum 'Purple Beauty'

Common Name: Purple Beauty Hens and Chicks

Zones: 3–8

Height & Spread: 3–4 inches tall, spreading 6–8 inches wide

Descriptive Features: A compact, neat-habited hens and chicks prized for its rich, deep coloring, forming medium-sized, semi-open rosettes of succulent, wedge-shaped leaves in deep greenish-red to plum-purple, deepening further with dark purple tips. Color intensifies with cooler fall temperatures, while summer heat can mute the tones to a more subdued gray-green with hints of apricot-tan. Each "hen" rosette steadily produces numerous "chick" offsets throughout the growing season, gradually spreading to form a dense, colorful mat. In mid to late summer, small star-shaped, purple-pink flowers rise on short stalks above the foliage, attracting bees, though the individual rosette that flowers dies afterward (a normal habit for the genus, quickly replaced by its offsets). Evergreen and extremely drought-tolerant once established, thriving in lean, gritty, well-drained soil and struggling in wet, poorly drained conditions, especially over winter. Deer- and rabbit-resistant, salt-tolerant, and essentially maintenance-free. An excellent choice for rock gardens, green roofs, wall crevices, containers, or edging in full sun.