Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’

Autumn Joy sedum earns its keep for months. Succulent gray-green mounds look tidy all summer, then flat flower heads open soft pink in late summer, deepen to copper and rust through fall, and stand as russet seedheads into winter. Bees and butterflies crowd the blooms.

Give it full sun and lean, well-drained soil, then mostly leave it alone; rich soil and heavy water make it flop. It laughs at drought, deer, and rabbits. Cut the old stems down in late winter and it starts the show again.