Chick Charms® Silver Suede Hens & Chicks

Light Needs

Full Sun

(6+ Hours Direct Sun)

Mature Height

2-3 Inches

Mature Spread

8 - 12 Inches

Growing Zones

3 to 8

Chick Charms® Silver Suede Hens & Chicks has mauve-pink and silver leaves in spring and takes on a stronger silvery cast during summer heat. Sempervivum ‘Neptune’ forms broad rosettes with fine cilia over the leaves, creating the distinctive velvety sheen behind its name. In winter, the foliage often takes on soft lilac tones. We enjoy watching these dramatic color changes throughout the year.

Large hens can reach about 5 to 6 inches across, while numerous chicks develop on longer stolons and gradually widen the colony to roughly 12 inches. Mature rosettes may produce pink summer flowers before dying naturally, with surrounding offsets continuing the planting. Its extreme cold tolerance and low water requirements make it well suited to gravel gardens, retaining-wall pockets, pathway edges, shallow troughs, and exposed rock gardens. The dense coating of fine hairs also gives the leaves a noticeably different texture from smoother hens and chicks selections.

Chick Charms® Silver Suede Hens & Chicks Care

Plant Chick Charms® Silver Suede Hens & Chicks in full sun for compact rosettes and richer seasonal coloring, with light afternoon shade helpful in hot southern climates. Use lean, sandy, rocky, or gritty soil with excellent drainage. Soil pH can range from mildly acidic to mildly alkaline.

Water newly planted rosettes about weekly during dry periods in spring and summer, allowing the soil to dry before the next soaking. Established plants need little supplemental irrigation. Slightly thinner or less firm leaves indicate that a deep drink may be helpful. Fertilizer is generally unnecessary in the landscape because rich feeding can produce looser foliage and less distinct coloring. Keep the crowns comparatively dry in winter, especially if repeated cold rain could remain around the plants.

Remove a flowering hen once the spent rosette has dried, leaving its chicks to occupy the opening. Offsets can be separated after they begin forming roots and replanted during active spring or early-summer growth. For outdoor containers, protect the pot from prolonged winter saturation, but allow the plant to experience normal cold temperatures.

Chick Charms® Silver Suede Hens & Chicks Spacing

Space plants about 8 to 10 inches apart so mature rosettes and their long-stemmed offsets have room to develop. A shallow 10-inch container accommodates one young plant, while a bowl 12 to 14 inches across allows a fuller colony to form. Choose a frost-resistant pot with generous drainage holes and a coarse succulent mix, adding moisture only after the medium has dried.

Chick Charms® Silver Suede Hens & Chicks

Pair Chick Charms® Silver Suede Hens & Chicks with sedum and black-eyed Susans in sunny, fast-draining landscape beds, where their different heights create clear separation around the low silver rosettes. For a broad container, combine it with other hens & chicks in green or burgundy foliage tones, keeping all plants under the same lean soil and restrained watering schedule. Collect different types of hens and chicks to create a colorful garden that puts on a show 12 months a year!

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