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Evergreen sempervivum spent the winter outdoors in my mother's old urns. Photo by Quincy Benton
Succulents might be an acquired taste. I used to consider them boring. When my mother used to swoon over her hens-and-chickens, I could not see what she saw. Where were the showy blossoms? Where was the heady fragrance?
But now that I've grown more discerning in my gardens, I'm all about echiveria and sempervivums and aloes--the succulents that have enormous architectural appeal. I grow them indoors and out. Most that spend the winter indoors get evacuated outside for summer.
I especially love these funky plants in unusual containers. For example, I treasure some old, ornamental concrete urns that had been my mother's. Though they are broken and their paint chipped, they have emotional value for me. And hen-and-chickens make the perfect planting for these weathered and worn containers.
Also known as houseleeks, sempervivum are among the most carefree plants. Their main requirement is good drainage. In winter, the plants can desiccate. They need a bit of water, but not too much.
These evergreen rosettes send off tinier rosettes that surround the mother plant. When the plants go to seed, they die back, but you can easily propagate from the babies.
To my eye now, these plants appear every bit as beautiful as any others. And they've endeared themselves to me for another reason: If I go away for a weekend without enlisting somebody to come to water my containers, they show no signs of resentful wilt.
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