Other Names:  Burgundy Jade, C. nudicaluis var. platyphylla

Description:

A dense, low growing variety with green, paddle shaped foliage that flushes bright red in winter, in full sun; drought-tolerant, does well in poor soils; clusters of cream flowers in summer; an excellent choice for containers and rock gardens

Ornamental Features

Red Carpet features showy clusters of creamy white star-shaped flowers rising above the foliage from early to late winter. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its attractive small succulent oval leaves are green in color with distinctive red edges. As an added bonus, the foliage turns a gorgeous ruby-red in the fall.

Landscape Attributes

Red Carpet is an herbaceous evergreen perennial with a ground-hugging habit of growth. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and should not require much pruning, except when necessary, such as to remove dieback. It is a good choice for attracting bees and butterflies to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Red Carpet is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• General Garden Use
• Groundcover
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Red Carpet will grow to be about 8 inches tall at maturity extending to 12 inches tall with the flowers, with a spread of 30 inches. Its foliage tends to remain low and dense right to the ground. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 15 years. As an evegreen perennial, this plant will typically keep its form and foliage year-round.

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers dry to average moisture levels with very well-drained soil, and will often die in standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. Like most succulents and cacti, this plant prefers to grow in poor soils and should therefore never be fertilized. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in poor soils, and is able to handle environmental salt. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This species is not originally from North America, and parts of it are known to be toxic to humans and animals, so care should be exercised in planting it around children and pets. It can be propagated by division.

Red Carpet is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its spreading habit of growth, it is ideally suited for use as a 'spiller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the edges where it can spill gracefully over the pot. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden. Be aware that in our climate, this plant may be too tender to survive the winter if left outdoors in a container. Contact our experts for more information on how to protect it over the winter months.