Creeping sedum ‘Tricolor’

* Common name: Creeping variegated stonecrop ‘Tricolor’

* Botanical name: Sedum spurium ‘Tricolor’

* What it is: A ground-hugging, heat- and drought-tough perennial groundcover with succulent green foliage edged in white. Also has pink tinges in cool weather. Foliage is evergreen through winter, too. Gets small rosy-pink flower clusters in late summer.

* Size: 4-6 inches tall. Space 2 feet apart.

* Where to use: Good low groundcover for hot, dry, sunny and even salty areas, such as along walks and driveways. Spreads to form a low, succulent, colorful mat. Also ideal in a rock garden.

* Care: Water the first season to establish the roots, then it’ll be one of your garden’s least water-needy plants. Fertilizer usually not needed, but an early-spring scattering of a balanced, granular fertilizer is optional. Shovel out and transplant or give away any sections creeping beyond where you want.

* Great partner: Underneath blue junipers, blue hollies, pink spireas or butterfly bushes. Salvia, lavender and Russian sage are good perennial partners.

— George Weigel