Big-flowered Houseleek

A charming evergreen perennial succulent native to the Alps, this species is exceptionally hardy (H7) and well-suited to the variable UK climate. It forms dense carpets of sticky, hairy rosettes that emit a faint, pleasant balsamic scent. The leaves are a soft green with reddish-brown tips. In midsummer, it produces relatively large, starry yellow flowers on sturdy, upright stems, which contrast beautifully against the green foliage. As a 'hen and chicks' variety, it spreads via offsets, making it perfect for filling crevices in rock walls, alpine troughs, or green roofs. It thrives in poor, sharply drained soil and requires very little maintenance. Unlike many tropical succulents, it handles frost and snow with ease, provided it is not sitting in waterlogged ground. It is a must-have for any British rockery or scree garden, providing year-round structural interest and nectar for pollinators during the flowering period.

Sun: Full sun.

Soil: Sharply drained, poor soil.

Hardiness: H7 — below −20°C.

Flowering: Jun, Jul, Aug.