Sempervivum Dark Beauty

Sempervivum 'Dark Beauty' is an exceptional variety of houseleek with an intensely dark purple colour that lasts almost all year round. Its medium-sized rosettes bring depth and contrast to flower pots. It will form a striking mound when nestled in amongst stones. This succulent perennial is hardy and robust, but excess moisture in winter will kill it. Clinging with all its might to life, even when abandoned on a pile of rocks, houseleeks are endearing plants that always manages to conquer the gardener's heart.

Sempervivum is a succulent perennial plant in the Crassulaceae family. All Sempervivum grow spontaneously in rocky grasslands, on rocks and scree, in open and sunny situations, mainly in mountainous areas. Their vegetation persists all year round, even in winter.

The hybrid variety 'Dark Beauty' has thick and long roots that penetrate deeply into rock crevices, ensuring a good grip on the walls while drawing water from the depths. It quickly forms superb colonies of rosettes of different sizes, juxtaposed, reaching 8cm (3in) in diameter at maturity and not exceeding 10cm (4in) in height. Over time, this houseleek can form a mound or dense carpet with its stoloniferous stems, spreading over 30 to 40cm (12 to 16in) on the ground, perfectly following the contours of the terrain. Resembling a sea urchin, each rosette is composed of numerous pointed, fleshy, upright leaves, closely packed together and without petioles. In summer, the leaves will be green at their base, but the purple colour will quickly take over, intensifying and darkening over the seasons. In the heart of winter, the rosettes will be almost black purple. Flowering occurs sporadically on rosettes aged 2 or 3 years, which then disappear, having ensured the plant's perpetuity by producing numerous small rosettes on the periphery. The 12cm (5in) tall flower stalks develop from June to August, formed by thick stems that bear 1 to 5 star-shaped flowers with 8 to 10 pink-purple petals.

Sempervivum 'Dark Beauty', like all houseleeks, is a boon for alpine gardens, as well as in all rocky places where the soil is lean and thin. It thrives where few species can live, colonising abandoned areas. If your soil is poor, rather dry, stony, rocky, or even slightly chalky, you can still enjoy this hardy perennial (which resists temperatures below -15°C (5°F)). It does not require maintenance and promises to liven up any pile of stones, a low wall, or even a green roof. Houseleeks are unusual and easy-to-grow succulents. Their flowers and foliage in various shades foster the desire to collect them, multiply them, and compose astonishing displays in the most inhospitable places. They are magnificent in container gardens, especially in low terrine-type pots, and irreplaceable in borders, troughs, or rockeries, alongside wall bellflowers or Lewisia cotyledon. Choose companions with staggered blooming times (sedums, thymes), or play with contrasts by combining it with lighter foliage (Sedum oreganum, Delosperma' Wheels of Wonder', etc.) to create a colourful and cheerful rock garden.