Succulents for Minnesota Landscapes

By Brenda Ortmann, Anoka County Extension Master Gardener

You don’t have to live in the desert to grow succulents as perennials; many are happily growing here in Minnesota. There are many reasons to give them a chance in your garden.

Succulents are beautiful in the landscape and low maintenance once established, and they are a great way to save water because they are well adapted to survive dry conditions. Succulents can thrive in difficult parts of your yard where many plants would fail. They are good for dry, rocky areas, sloped landscapes, or areas around buildings that get lots of direct sunlight. While they can survive drought conditions, succulents still need regular water during particularly hot or dry spells to look their best.

Some of my favorite succulents make great weed-blocking groundcovers in difficult areas. Many low-growing sedums are great for this purpose and are readily available at your local garden center. Sedums come in many shapes, sizes, and colors ranging from burgundy to green to chartreuse. Some will flower under the right conditions. One currently establishing in my garden is ‘Red Carpet’ (Sedum spurium), which I’m using as a border plant to fill in up to the sidewalk.

Tall sedums make excellent decorative perennial plants. The most notable is ‘Autumn Joy’ (Hylotelephium telephium). It is a clumping perennial that grows pink flowers in late summer that fade to a rusty red color in the fall. The green foliage dies back in the winter but re-emerges in the spring. It is a very simple succulent to grow and easily divides or propagates into new plants. If grown in fertile soil, cut it back by one-third before blooms form to prevent flopping. Several varieties of tall sedum exist, so if ‘Autumn Joy’ isn’t your jam, check out other options. Varieties like ‘Purple Emperor’ with purple foliage are stunning.

Another Zone 3-9 hardy succulent is sempervivum (Sempervivum tectorum) also known as hen and chicks. This plant needs little care and tolerates poor soils and slopes. The main rosette, the “hen,” grows many babies, the “chicks.” It is a low grower, perfect for rockscapes with gritty soils where it can spread. Sempervivum rosettes vary in size, color, texture, and bloom color. Under strong sun, it has enhanced color or completely changes color, known as “heat stress,” which is normal for many succulents.

Prickly pear is also, perhaps surprisingly, a Minnesota-hardy cactus. Eastern prickly pear (Opuntia humifusa) can grow and spread to make a great little patch in local xeriscape gardens. Flowers are yellow, and these plants can bear fruit. The pads are edible when despined and cooked. In the winter, prickly pear plants get soft and fall flat, but in the spring when sunlight increases and temperatures warm, they perk up and turn green again.

Gardens that require less water are not only economical but also more Earth friendly. You don’t have to intend to convert your entire yard into succulents or a xeriscape garden, but there is always space for succulents to be beautifully incorporated into any landscape.

Anoka County Master Gardeners are hosting guided garden tours in July and August: Three Seasons of Color; Growing Vegetables in the Home Garden; and Feeding the Community: Vegetable Donation Gardening. Tours are free and no registration is required. Visit anokamastergardeners.org for details.