The Hardy Flowering Plant That Thrives When You Add A Little Gravel To The Soil

After deciding to add a rock garden to the landscape, gardeners often find themselves searching for the perfect flowering plants to grow in gravelly soil or with gravel mulch. Not all plants will tolerate such conditions, but some absolutely thrive in them. Hardy ice plant (Delosperma cooperi) is one of those plants that grow well in gravel gardens, and it will brighten up your landscape with its showy, daisy-like, pinkish purple flowers. Not to be confused with invasive ice plant (Carpobrotus spp.) — hardy ice plant is not considered invasive in North America.

A member of the Aizoaceae or fig-marigold family, this salt tolerant, flowering plant blooms throughout the summer and is also known by the common name pink carpet. Hardy ice plant has long, narrow, succulent, green leaves and its foliage is evergreen. This perennial in USDA Hardiness Zones 6 to 10 is native to South Africa, and reaches up to 6 inches tall with a 24-inch spread. With a creeping growth habit, it makes a perfect ground cover, especially in rocky conditions.

If you're thinking of purchasing a flat of these succulents, there are things you should know before planting hardy ice plant. These flowering plants prefer hot and dry growing conditions, making them great for rock gardens. Requiring full sun to thrive, hardy ice plants are adapted to growing in poor soils and don't need fertilizing. While these succulents are drought tolerant, they need more water in summer than in winter. And since hardy ice plants can suffer in wet winter weather, it's particularly important to make sure that they have protection from damp conditions — and that's where the gravel comes in.

Improved drainage is one of the benefits of adding mineral grit, such as gravel, to your succulent soil, allowing water to quickly move through the growing medium rather than stagnating around the plant's roots. Whether growing hardy ice plants in pots or in garden beds, gravel can also be used as a mulch to help prevent rotting, since it will keep the stems of this succulent off of the soil when its wet.