A complete guide for the propagation, pruning and general plant-care for all types of Sempervivum, Hens and Chicks.
- Botanical name: Sempervivum
- Common names: Hens and Chicks, Houseleeks, Liverforever, Old Man and Woman, Welcome-home-husband-however-drunk-you-be (and loads more!)
- Family:Crassulaceae
- Type: Evergreen succulent
- Flower colour: Pink or pale yellow
- Height: Max. 10cm
- Spread: Max. 50cm
Growing Conditions
- Light: Full sun
- Water: Little
- Temperature: Frost tolerant. Some species can survive a minimum of -20ºC
- Soil: Free-draining, sandy or loamy
- Aspect: North, south, east or west-facing
What are houseleeks?
The Sempervivum or houseleek is an intriguing, low-growing, mat-forming, succulent plant. It is evergreen and forms rosette-shaped plants in greens, reds and yellow – almost resembling little roses. It can also produce flower spikes in pinks or pale yellow. It is an incredibly hardy plant- surviving most temperatures in the UK - is easy to grow and comes in a wide range of different species, varieties and cultivars. It is a wonderful little plant all round.
Perhaps, the most common species is the Sempervivum tectorum (Roof Houseleek), which is native to southern Europe. It forms large rosettes in green with purpley-red tips. As with all Sempervivums, it reproduces vegetatively when the main rosette, known as the “hen”, produces tiny, offset rosettes known as “chicks” (hence the common name, Hens and Chicks).
This care guide can be applied to all Sempervivum species including Sempervivum arachnoideum, Sempervivum calcareum and Sempervivum wulfenii.
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In what site and situation should I plant my Sempervivum?
Sempervivum grow most happily outdoors (in and out of protection) in the UK, although some people may find theirs grow successfully indoors too. The most important factors to consider when planting your Sempervivum are light-levels, moisture-levels and ventilation.
Light
They require plenty of sunlight (full sun is best), but may need partial-shade in extreme heat. Be particularly careful of light levels in summer, if you are growing your houseleeks in a glasshouse or conservatory, to avoid leaf-scorch. You can implement seasonal, partial shading in the form of slatted blinds, gauze or shade-wash painted onto the outside of the glass.
If you are growing your houseleek inside your home be especially mindful of the light levels, as most people’s homes are not bright enough to support growing them. If you notice your indoor Sempervivum losing its colour or becoming leggy is not receiving enough light. Put it outside and it should get it’s colour back. You can also try rotating it between indoors and outside to allow you to sometimes keep it inside, but I do not recommend this in most instances.
Water
The houseleek can be very successfully grown in containers, and makes an excellent addition to rockeries and scree beds, so long as they do not become waterlogged. Always grow in free-draining soil.
You can grow the Sempervivum under protection in an alpine house or greenhouse in pots which you will need to water individually. You can also employ watering systems that keep all the pots watered at once – e.g. using capillary matting on greenhouse staging that those pots sit on, or by half-submerging porous pots in moist sand-beds.
Ventilation
Sempervivum species require ventilation, so be careful not to overcrowd them, particularly if you are growing them under protection. Hinged roof-vents or louvre-style side-vents on greenhouses can help with air flow, as will open doors on opposite ends of an alpine house. Think of an alpine house as a roof over the heads of plants that don’t like to remain wet for too long.
Sites and Situations
Due to the Sempervivum’s hardiness and drought tolerance, they can be grown in many different places. They have the ability to grow in shallow soil and out of rock crevices, where there is just the tiniest amount of soil. For this reason they work really well when tucked into gaps in stone walls, draped over rocks or in gravel beds. Rockeries and gravel give them free-drainage and enough protection for their roots. They can also be very effectively grown on "green roofs" where you will not need to water them, or worry about them barely at all.
The humble houseleek is a very versatile plant – just be mindful of the above environmental conditions whether growing your plant outside or under protection (or inside).
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How much water should I give my houseleeks?
Sempervivum require very little water – as with most succulent plants. They dislike sitting in waterlogged soil, which can cause root rot.
Water very occasionally, when the soil is dry. Again, as with most succulents, one generous watering once in a while is better than lots of light waterings. Upon watering you potted houseleeks, completely soak the soil until it runs out the holes in the base. Don’t water it again until it's completely dried out again – this may be a couple of weeks, or more in the winter months.
To check the moisture levels in your soil, you can poke a finger into the soil of your potted plant – water it well, if it is dry, and if it feels wet, wait for a few days before checking again.
If your plant ever starts to actually look a bit dry and you haven’t checked the soil in a while, go ahead and check (succulents should look "succulent" after all). If the soil feels dry, give it a good drink.
Generally the watering requirements for all succulents are highest in the spring and summer. In autumn and through the winter, you will need to start reducing the amount of times you water your Sempervivum plants to about once a month. If you aren’t sure, just keep checking how moist the soil feels – this is the easiest way.
There is no need to give plants planted in open-ground, outdoors any additional water. Sempervivums are so incredibly drought tolerant that they can stand any very dry weather that we have in the UK.
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What soil do Sempervivums prefer?
Houseleeks thrive in free-draining, nutrient-low soils. Outdoors, in open ground, poor, sandy soils are perfect. If you have a very heavy, clay soil, you can work in a commercial soil-improver, grit or pea-sized gravel – to lighten it and to improve the drainage. Be mindful when incorporating too much organic matter, to loosen the structure of your soil, that you don’t add anything too rich. Something like manure is too rich as it contains too many nutrients, even when well rotted.
If you are growing your Sempervivums in containers, apply the same rules you would for most succulent plants, and choose a well-draining compost that isn’t too fertile. A soil with a neutral pH is preferred.
Specialist cacti and succulent mixes are perfect – either “off the shelf” or homemade – with just the right soil particle to air ratio. Mix sand, perlite and soil – 1 part sand : 1.5 parts perlite : 1.5 parts soil.
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DoSempervivumplants need feeding?
It is not necessary to give Sempervivum any supplementary feed as they tend to do really well in “poor” soil. If you think your plant would benefit from feeding, feed it in spring at the start of its growing season. Choose a controlled-release fertiliser and feed just once a year. Be careful not to overfeed your houseleeks, as nutrient-low soils promote far better leaf colour and result in sturdy, firmer rosettes.
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Why did my flowering houseleek die?
It is a completely natural process that a Sempervivum plant will die after it has flowered. When a houseleek is on its way to flowering, you will see it stretching up and growing taller. Buds will form at the end of the flowering stem before opening to reveal pink or pale yellow, star-shaped blooms. Once flowering has ended, the plant has completed its life lifecycle so it dies, by which time it has usually produced many offsets (baby “chicks”) which will continue to grow.
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How do I repot a Sempervivum?
The best time to replant your houseleek is as it starts its growing at the beginning of spring. Only take a very young plant out of it’s existing pot when the soil is fully dry.
- Prepare a suitable container with drainage holes, and part fill with an appropriate potting mix (described above).
- Gently knock your plant out of its container, and tap the soil away from the roots (removing any rotted or dead ones as you go).
- Place your plant in the new pot and backfill with your potting compost -
- Spread the roots out as you plant.
- Cover the plant right up to its crown and compress the soil to make sure its firm in the pot.
- Be careful not to plant it too deeply.
- Top dress with horticultural grit or small gravel, making sure to distribute the grit right up underneath the base of the rosette. This will protect the crown of the plant and stop it from sitting on wet soil – it also looks really attractive, especially around container-grown plants.
- Don’t water the plant for approximately one week to prevent root rot. After one week, water sparingly from then on, as described earlier.
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Do I need to prune my houseleek?
No.Sempervivum species require no pruning, but you should cut off spent flower spikes and carefully remove dried, damaged and dead leaves.
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How should I propagate Sempervivum succulents?
It’s so easy and fun to propagate these little succulents – which ultimately means that you can very easily grow new plants, for completely free.
Sempervivum’s natural growth habit and way of vegetatively reproducing lends itself to effective propagation, and give it one of its common names, “Hens and Chicks”. This name refers to the way that the mother hen produces an offset chick from little, horizontal stems (stolons) all around it. These offsets can be separated and divided for very easy propagation.
Alternatively, you can leave the chicks so that they remain attached to the hen. They will naturally root down into the soil and in time, produce their own chick offsets – eventually filling up all the growing space and forming a clumping mat of rosettes. This will create an attractive, easy to maintain landscape. Be mindful that ifyou want your individual house leeks to remain regular , rosette-shape, you’ll need to occasionally thin them out, separating the chicks from their hens. This will prevent them looking “squashed” or from growing upwards, vertically.
Sempervivum can also be propagated by seed germination, but most species will almost never root from taking a leaf cutting (unlike most other succulents).
How to propagate Sempervivum spp.
Offset propagation: This propagation method involves separating the mini plant offsets (the “chicks”) from the parent plant (the “hen”).
- Look out for tiny nubs (the start of chicks) that may be forming.
- You will see these as they emerge from near the base of the main rosette, inside the leaves, growing outwards on horizontal stems. These might look more bud-like at first, before starting to resemble the rosette shape of the mother plant.
- You will notice that the stems the chicks are growing on look healthy and in some cases have little leaves along them. This indicates that the chick is still feeding off it’s parent and needs to be left alone to grow, for now.
- You’ll want to wait until they are grown enough to detach – when the chick puts out its own roots and the stolon (horizontal stem) begins to wither and shrivel.
- N.b. If you accidentally knock or break off an offset prematurely, pot it up anyway – it will most likely still grow (waiting will just give it the best chance).
- Once you have identified a chick to propagate, cut or pinch it off. You can use a sharp, clean knife to detach it, carefully cutting through the stem that attaches it to the hen, or simply wiggle it loose.
- Remove any soil or debris that has collected on the separated chick by brushing it off gently.
- Plant the chick –
- Planting in a pot - Fill a pot with an appropriate potting mix and lightly tamp down. Make a shallow hole to plant it into, spread the roots and lightly backfill with soil to give the plantlet some support – don’t plant it too deep.
- Planting in open soil - Make a shallow hole to plant it into, spread the roots and lightly backfill with soil - don’t plant it too deep.
- Planting in a crevice - Poke the roots of the chick into the rock crevice or gap in a wall - backfill with a little soil to secure it.
- Top dress with horticultural grit or gravel – putting it right up underneath the base of the rosette, to stop it getting too wet and to look attractive.
- Don’t water the baby chick for about a week to prevent root rot. Then (if planted in a container and if it has not rained) water sparingly from then on.
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What pests and diseases are Sempervivum likely to get?
They are mostly affected by vine weevil (especially when grown in containers) and Sempervivum leaf miner.
Houseleeks are at risk of developing a fungal disease called Endophyllum rust, as well as being susceptible to crown and root rot. These are all caused by overwatering and can be prevented by growing your plants in free-draining soil and by allowing your plants to dry out between watering. Top-dressing your soil with grit will help to prevent your plant resting on wet soil, and will reduce crown rot.
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Help! I still have a question about my Sempervivum. Can you help me?
If you still have a question about your Sempervivum,pleaseget in touchand I will try to answer you.
