Plant Finder

Moana Nursery High Desert Plant Finder & Guide

Other Names:  Trailing Ice Plant

Group/Class:  SandGem™ Series

Brand:  Danziger

Description:

A low growing, semi trailing succulent, native to South Africa but amazingly hardy in North America; large, bright orange daisy-like flowers with yellow centers from late spring to fall; perfect for xeriscapes, rock gardens, screes and sandy soils

Ornamental Features

SandGem™ Ember Ice Plant features showy orange daisy flowers with yellow centers rising above the foliage from late spring to mid fall. Its attractive small succulent narrow leaves are green in color. As an added bonus, the foliage turns a gorgeous burgundy in the fall.

Landscape Attributes

SandGem™ Ember Ice Plant is an herbaceous evergreen perennial with a trailing habit of growth, eventually spilling over the edges of hanging baskets and containers. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other garden plants with less refined foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. 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.

SandGem™ Ember Ice Plant is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

SandGem™ Ember Ice Plant will grow to be only 4 inches tall at maturity extending to 6 inches tall with the flowers, with a spread of 14 inches. Its foliage tends to remain low and dense right to the ground. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 5 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. This plant should not require much in the way of fertilizing once established, although it may appreciate a shot of general-purpose fertilizer from time to time early in the growing season. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in sandy soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America. It can be propagated by cuttings; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

SandGem™ Ember Ice Plant is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its trailing 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.