Ice Plant

If this rainbow of colorful ice plant blooms caught your eye, you’ll be glad to know that these pint-sized perennials are as easy-going as the flowers are pretty. Low-growing, with practically no pest or disease problems, ice plant provides long-lasting color for garden hot spots that have good-draining soil and plenty of sunshine. Plus, bees and butterflies love to visit and deer usually pass them by.

The reflected heat along the driveway or path to the front door is perfect for ice plant, where it provides a colorful texture-rich greeting. And planted on top of a bare retaining wall, this ground cover’s low mat of foliage will gradually spread, growing over the edge to soften its look.

There are numerous ice plant species, but Cooper’s ice plant is the one you’re most likely to find at garden centers, probably because it grows line, a nonprofit group that promotes low-maintenance drought-tolerant plants for the High Plains and Mountain regions. But many of their plants grow happily just about anywhere. When you’ve found your favorites, turn the page for expert tips that will help keep ice plant growing beautifully in your garden.