Just finished creating a rock garden in front of my house. Its on a slight slope. I just read that I could plant sedum right into the rocks. The soil underneath the base of rocks is clayish soil with roots from the bushes and palm tree that I pulled out ( should rot in a couple of years). I'm about to change everything and hoping you can answer my questions. I read that the sedum needs 18 to 24 inches in spacing for each plant - which if I build a small stone layer around each plant will decrease the space needed as it will creep over the rocks. Have to come up with a new design.

What I have done so far - I put several bags of pea gravel and then river rock pebbles. Its on a slight slope. I have 12 small sedum plants - each inside a 5 inch jiffy pot then placed inside coconut coir basket liners with potting soil (4 liners with 3 small plants in each). I was worried that the soil would wash away with the heavy rains in the summer time. I'm thinking I could leave the sedum in the jiffy pot (potting soil mixture) to help maintain the soil during the summer time and the jiffy pot will deteriorate when the heavy rains start. or I could take the plant out of the jiffy pot and put more pea gravel around the plant and use the bigger stones to hold the pea gravel and sedum in place until the roots form a anchor in the rocks? Cut up some of the liners to create a mini wall around the plant for the summer rains until their roots get anchored in the rocks?

My depth of the rock slope - The top of the rock slope is 2 1/2 inches tapering down to 1 1/2 inches near the bottom. I have paver sand I can add to the pea gravel, compost cow manure too. I could cut the coconut coir liners and insert them around the plant to help maintain the soil during the heavy rains?, but it will wash away with a good storm which we have quite often in my area during the summer. Drainage is good. area is a quarter circle length is 15 feet.. I can't find pumice in my area. Lowes sells a palm and catcus soil mixture I could buy? Any other suggestions?
Rose

Yes, Sedums would love that. Just stick pieces wherever you want new plants to grow. A screwdriver can probably help you make little holes to place stems. I wouldn't add any "dirt."

Hi Rose, so glad to meet you, and to NGA.
Sedum do like some moisture, and clay is full of nutrients that would be good for your sedum. I think what I would do is add some bagged compost to the clay soil, mixing it well with the clay. On the down side of the slope I would build a stone wall bringing the area up to the same level and the higher part of where you want to plant the sedum. Hope that makes sense? Move your clay/compost mix to the back of the area and use thick plastic to line the inside of the rock wall, but not the bottom of the hole because you want good drainage. You can feather in the rocks as they come up to the level of the higher ground, that way you won't need them to come all the way around into a circle, but more of a half or 3/4 circle. And I would dig down a bit and plant the first stones down into the soil which will anchor the. You can also us a sharp gravel to fill in between the bigger rocks. The do the plastic liner and fill in with your clay/compost mix. Plant your sedum into the mix you have made and top dress with about 1 or 2 inches of pea gravel.
What kind of sedum are you using? It looks like it might be one of the Petrosedum rupestre?

Hi,valleylynn,
I can't dig into the top of the slope until the pigmy palm tree roots rot (25yrs of roots) - will take a couple of years to rot. (too difficult by hand - the last pigmy palm root ball taken out was 24 -36 inches height and width not counting the deeper roots and I hired someone to remove it a couple of months ago.). The clay soil won't wash away with the rocks on top of it, my concern was the potting soil. The clay soil underneath the rocks is thick heavy clay that doesn't drain quickly and from what I read sedum needs quick draining soil. That why I thought I use potting soil until I read you can plant sedum in rocks.

I can dig into the slope on the lower end and put flower bed soil mixed with potting soil, compost,pea gravel, plant the sedum in it and then add more pea gravel, then rock pebbles all around. The rocks should contain the soil underneath the sedum with a 2 inch bed of gravel and then I add some larger rocks for the sedum to grow over.

Eventually I want the rock garden to appear similar to this picture over time - adding different color shaped rocks and other small height plants. Though my garden section is larger than that picture - gives the idea though.

Thank you for telling me how to handle the soil mixture and depth of pea gravel - the lower end of the slope should work fine for that. (There is a 3 inch incline just from the soil underneath the rocks).
I have no idea what type of sedum it is except it appears to be similar to the golden variety of sedum. Next time I go to the nursery where I bought it from I will ask what the name as the plants had no tag name on them.
Rose

I forgot about the palm tree roots. Yes, I agree you wold want to fill your planting area with your above planned mixture. I wouldn't leave the sedum in the pots though, that will not encourage them to spread their roots out. I would just plant them directly into the mixture. I look forward to see how they do for you.
Love the photo of a mature succulent garden. Living where you do you can grow some very interesting succulents outdoors.
Please keep us updated on your progress, what a great gardening adventure you are beginning.