Is There a Striped Sempervivum?

Hens and Chicks

• Sempervivum, otherwise known as hens and chicks for the habit of forming small offshoots at the base of a large plant, is a succulent normally hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 3 through 8. It is a rosette-forming perennial also known as houseleeks. Though they do not technically have striped leaves, some cultivars such as “Black,” which is hardy in USDA zones 3 through 11, look striped due to different-colored spikes on the tips of their leaves, or color gradation from the bottom to the top of the leaf. “Beta” is a cultivar with blue-green leaves and red edges.

Striped Appeal

• “Striped Red Lion,” hardy in USDA zones 4 through 9, is a markedly striped cultivar with bright red coloration throughout much of the plant and lime green streaks on leaf surfaces. “New Rhumba” is a sport of “Red Lion,” a non-striped variety closely related to "Striped Red Lion." In botany, a sport is an offshoot of the plant that demonstrates different characteristics than the parent plant, but can be clipped and propagated into a new cultivar, as is the case with “New Rhumba,” which has longer leaves and a brighter green center than “Striped Red Lion.”

Propagating Plants

• Sempervivum propagates by forming smaller rosettes at the base of the mother plant. When rosettes become too numerous or begin to drain the mother plant, you can carefully uproot the whole colony, cut the babies off the mother with a sharp knife, leave them all in the open air to callous for two or three days, and then replant in separate pots. If your plant flowers, you can also let it go to seed, then collect and plant seeds. It will take roughly three years before the plant flowers again, after which it will die.

Culture and Care

• Because it is adapted to well-draining, gravelly soils and low water, sempervivum is hard to kill. Because it is a succulent, you are in more danger of overwatering sempervivum than not giving it enough water, so wait until soil dries out entirely before soaking the soil once more. Sempervivum does require full sun, so whether you are growing outdoors or inside, make sure it receives as much light as possible.