Garden Scheme
Plant library · Succulents & Cacti
Sedum morganianum
Burro’s Tail is a trailing succulent grown for its plump blue-green foliage and long, cascading habit. At up to 3 feet tall, it reads more as a vertical drape than an upright clump, making its drop below the container part of the design. Sedum morganianum works best where its stems can hang freely without being brushed, handled, or crowded by nearby planting.
Space Burro's Tail 18 inches apart, measured center to center (45 cm).
The mature spread is about 18 inches (45 cm), so neighboring plants just meet at maturity without crowding.
Treat 18 inches as a planning baseline — cultivar and local growing conditions shift the final footprint.
Use Burro’s Tail in a hanging basket, elevated pot, wall-mounted container, or on a high shelf with clear airspace below. Position it beside, rather than within, busy routes so the hanging stems do not intrude into a path, doorway, chair area, or watering access point. Its 1 1/2-foot spread suits a single-feature container or the outer edge of a mixed succulent display, where the plant can spill over without covering lower neighbors.
Allow a 1 1/2-foot-wide footprint for each plant, measured across the pot or planting area rather than the length of the hanging stems. For grouped containers or in-ground planting where it can be grown outdoors, space plants 1 1/2 feet apart, center to center. Leave additional open space at the front or below the planting position for the trailing growth, especially near steps, narrow patios, and bed edges.
Give it partial sun and keep it in a sharply drained setting that suits its low water needs. A container with drainage is especially useful because it keeps the root zone separate from more frequently watered plants. In a mixed arrangement, place Burro’s Tail with other plants that can tolerate a dry interval rather than beside moisture-demanding foliage.
Late spring through summer is the flowering window, when small blooms can add a brief accent among the trailing foliage. In USDA Zones 10 and 11, it can hold a place in the outdoor plan as a perennial. Elsewhere, use a movable container so the same cascading feature can be brought under protection when temperatures fall.
Keep the display out of high-contact locations. The fleshy leaves detach readily when stems are handled or repeatedly bumped, so reserve clearance around the pot and avoid placing it where people, pets, tools, or adjacent plants will catch the trailing growth. A protected hanging position helps preserve the full, braided-tail effect.[1]