Purple ice plant

Sun

Full sun; flowers open best in bright sunshine.

Water

Water regularly while establishing, allowing the soil to dry between waterings. Once established, water during prolonged drought; avoid persistently damp soil.

Soil

Lean, sharply drained sandy or gravelly soil. Use a raised bed or a gritty container mix where soil is heavy or winters are wet.

Height

0.2-0.3 ft (0.05-0.09 m)

Spread

1.5-2 ft (0.45-0.6 m)

Flowers

Late spring to early summer, with occasional later flowers; orange petals surround a magenta ring and pale centre.

Foliage

Small, fleshy green leaves form a dense mat; foliage may turn reddish or bronze in cold weather. Evergreen in mild climates, but may die back partly in colder winters.

Growth

Moderate to fast in warm, sunny, well-drained conditions.

Care needed

Low

• Pollinators
• Deer resistant
• Drought tolerant
• Heat tolerant
• Low allergen

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Easy

Toughness

Fairly tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   0.2 ft (0.07 m)

   full size

About 5 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Safe

Growth rate

Fast

• Plant with the crown at soil level, not buried.
• Water new plants when the root zone dries; reduce watering once established.
• Use gravel around the crown rather than moisture-holding bark mulch.
• Avoid rich manure and heavy feeding; lean soil helps keep growth compact.
• Keep fallen leaves and wet debris off the mat during winter.

Pruning. In spring, trim away dead or frost-damaged shoots once new growth shows. Lightly shorten straggling stems after the main flowering flush; routine deadheading is unnecessary.

Spring

Remove winter debris and trim dead shoots when fresh growth appears.

Spring

Plant after severe frosts have passed, choosing a sunny position with sharp drainage.

Late spring

Check newly planted roots for moisture and water when dry.

Summer

Lightly trim straggling stems after flowering and water established plants only during prolonged drought.

Autumn

Clear fallen leaves and check that water drains freely from beds and pots.

Winter

Keep containers out of standing water; shelter them from persistent rain in wet climates.

• Plant between rocks on sunny slopes, where its mat softens hard edges.
• Edge gravel paths with bright flowers and low foliage, keeping plants clear of foot traffic.
• Let it trail over raised-bed edges or shallow containers.
• Combine with small sedums, thymes and compact grasses in a dry, open planting.

Garden styles it suits: Dry gravel garden, Desert / xeriscape, Alpine rock garden, Mediterranean, Low-maintenance and Small-space.

Plant it with: Creeping thyme, Stonecrop, Hens and chicks, Blue fescue and Dwarf bearded iris.

Wildlife: Open flowers attract bees and other pollinating insects. The low mat provides little food or shelter for larger wildlife.

• Root or crown rot in wet soil: improve drainage, reduce watering and replace badly rotted plants.
• Winter losses in cold, wet sites: use raised gravel beds and protect containers from prolonged rain.
• Sparse flowering or loose growth in shade: move to full sun and avoid heavy feeding.
• Mealybugs, especially under cover: remove visible insects and treat persistent infestations with a product labelled for succulents.

Not known to be toxic to people, cats, dogs or horses. Cultivar-specific safety information is limited, and no part should be treated as edible; eating it may cause stomach upset.

• Cooper's ice plant (Delosperma cooperi)

  Usually has uniformly bright magenta-purple flowers rather than orange petals with a contrasting magenta ring.

• Hottentot fig (Carpobrotus edulis)

  Much larger, with long, thick, triangular leaves and larger yellow or pink flowers; invasive in several coastal regions.

Delosperma comes from Greek words meaning 'visible seed', referring to the exposed seeds in open capsules.

Propagation. Root stem cuttings during warm weather, where local plant-variety rights permit. Seedlings will not reliably reproduce this cultivar's flower colours.

Accepted botanical name

Delosperma

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.