SEMPERVIVUM MRS. GIUSEPPI HENS AND CHICKS (SUCCULENT)
ZONE 3-8
Sempervivum calcareum ‘Mrs Giuseppi’ (Hens and Chicks) is a mat-forming succulent perennial with large, evergreen rosettes, up to 4 in. wide (10 cm), densely packed with fleshy, sharply pointed, pale green leaves, adorned with burgundy-red tips. The mother rosette (Hen) spreads in all directions by horizontal stems to form offsets (chicks). Each offset will develop roots of its own and become independent of the parent plant as the connecting stolon withers. In summer, a thick flowering stalk arises from the center of the hen rosette and bears showy starry, pale pink flowers. Sempervivums are monocarpic: they die after flowering. However, the offsets they produce usually make up for the losses and fill the gaps left by the dead rosettes.