Orange Stonecrop, Russian Stonecrop

Phedimus kamtschaticus

FED-ih-mis  kam-SHAY-ti-kus

SYN.

Sedum kamtschaticum

SEE-dum  kam-SHAY-ti-kum

BACK AND FORTH from Phedimus to Sedum and Sedum to Phedimus how many times? Almost every time I update this page I have to change the names. It has stayed Phedimus kamtschaticus since I updated in 2019, so hopefully, it will say that way…

Synonyms of Phedimus kamtschaticus (14) (UPDATED ON 12-5-23 from Plants of the World Online): Aizopsis florifera (Praeger) P.V.Heath (2001), Aizopsis kamtschatica (Fisch.) Grulich (1984), Aizopsis kurilensis (Vorosch.) S.B.Gontch. (1999), Aizopsis takesimensis (Nakai) P.V.Heath (2001), Phedimus florifer (Praeger) ‘t Hart (1995), Phedimus takesimensis (Nakai) ‘t Hart (1995), Sedum aizoon subsp. kamtschaticum (Fisch.) Fröd. (1931), Sedum eooacombianum Praeger (1921), Sedum floriferum Praeger (1918), Sedum kamtschaticum Fisch. (1841), Sedum kamtschaticum f. angustifolium Kom. (1929), Sedum kurilense Vorosch. (1965), Sedum sikokianum subsp. kurilense (Vorosch.) Vorosch. (1985), Sedum takesimense Nakai (1919)

Phedimus kamtschaticus (Fisch.) ’t Hart is the accepted scientific name of this species of Phedimus. It was named and described as such by Henk ’t Hart and Urs Eggli in H.’t Hart & U.Eggli (eds.), Evolution and Systematics of the Crassulaceae in 1995. It was first named as described as Sedum kamtschaticum by Friedrich Ernst Ludwig von (Fedor Bogdanovic) Fischer in Index Seminum in 1841.

The genus, Phedimus Raf., was named and described by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque in the American Monthly Magazine and Critical Review in 1817.

The genus, Sedum L., was named and described as such by Carl von Linnaeus in the first volume of the first edition of Species Plantarum in 1753.

As of 12-15-23 when this page was last updated, Plants of the World Online by Kew lists 17 species in the Phedimus genus. It is a member of the plant family Crassulaceae with 36 genera. POWO lists 464 species in the Sedum genus… Those numbers could change as updates are made on POWO.

I had been in correspondence with one of the foremost Crassulaceae experts, Margrit Bischofberger of the International Crassulaceae Network, and she had this to say in an email in 2013…

“For the plant now called Phedimus kamtschaticus :

It was described as a Sedum species in 1841 and has been considered a Sedum species for a very long time. The genus Sedum in a wide sense has been used to accommodate a great number of sometimes fairly diverse plants. At the end of the last century botanists have begun to separate certain groups with distinctive features and give them new names, > Phedimus, > Hylotelephium, < Rhodiola, > Orostachys etc.

So now the correct name of a group of plants with flat leaves which are often serrate or dentate is Phedimus. That means it is the other way round: The accepted name is Phedimus kamtschaticus and the earlier name S. kamtschaticum is a synonym.”

THERE ARE A FEW LINKS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE FOR FURTHER READING

Apparently, I bought this plant from Mast’s Greenhouse on May 16, 2016, when I was temporarily without a camera. I took a photo of it with my computer and that’s when it is dated. I bought quite a few plants while I was there that were unlabeled which can be a problem when buying from Amish greenhouses (at least for me). I took all their photos with my computer that I can barely make out, and to this day I am scratching my head as to what some of the plants were and even what became of them… Finally, I did get another camera on July 19.

Anyway, no matter what you call it, this plant is AWESOME! It doesn’t matter what we humans call it, it knows who it is and I think it is keeping it a secret.

USEFUL INFORMATION:
Family: Crassulaceae.
Origin: Japan, Kamchatka, Kuril Island…
Zones: USDA Zones 4a-9b (-30 to 25° F).
Size: 6-8” tall or more. Larger if it is a… You know what I mean.
Light: Sun to part shade.
Soil: Well-drained.
Water: Average water needs. Drought tolerant.

As with all Phedimus/Sedum, if they are grown in the ground they need very well-draining soil. They aren’t so much particular about the soil type as the need for it to be well-drained. This Phedimus kamtschaticus, or whatever you call it, is growing on the second level of a raised bed and it does great.

They are drought tolerant although they appreciate regular watering during the heat of summer when it doesn’t rain that much.

They will do well in the sun to light shade. In some parts of the country, they may do best in light shade where the heat gets very intense. Although my Phedimus kamtschaticum is growing where it “could” get full sun all summer, in years past it was partially shaded by the Marigold ‘Brocade’ on the lower level of the bed and the Celosia argentea ‘Cramer’s Amazon’ on the upper level. Sometimes if I am not paying attention, it would almost get covered up. I have to do something about that for 2018.

<<<<2018>>>>

January 2018 came in cold and hard with several days well below zero. If there was ever a test for plant hardiness this would have been it. The Phedimus kamtschaticus made it through with flying colors.

Well, 2018 is here and this plant has survived the winter and is getting off to a good start.

In the summer of 2018, I did not have the Celosia argentea ‘Cramer’s Amazon’ on the upper level of the bed nor the Marigolds in the bottom level. So, the Phedimus kamtschaticus was in full, intense sun.

The Phedimus kamtschaticus was still doing well and looking good on April 13 when the above photo was taken.

I am kind of running out of words…

It is always good to see this Sedum, I mean Phedimus, start to flower.

Breaking the habit of calling it a Phedimus instead of Sedum is not going to be easy. Changing all the captions is a good reminder…

 

This is the first year my Phedimus kamtschaticus has sprawled out like this. It is normally more upright. The only difference is that it doesn’t have other plants growing around it.

Maybe it felt like it had the freedom to spread out a little or because it wasn’t competing for light.

<<<<2019>>>>

The Phedimus kamtschaticus is beginning to grow after its winter’s rest. It is still a little blushed from the cool temps. This winter wasn’t as cold as last year, though.

This Phedimus sprawled somewhat last summer and the stems that were touching the ground have taken root.

Looking pretty good on April 7.

The Phedimus kamtschaticus is well underway for a new summer.

I’m running out of words again…

 

You know who is beginning to bud…

 

Starting to flower well and sprawl a little leaving an open hole in the middle of the clump…

This clump flowered well again in the summer of 2019 then afterward started sprawling again.

<<<<2020>>>>

The Phedimus kamtschaticus did very well over the summer in 2020 but I was fairly busy and didn’t take many plant photos.

<<<<2022>>>>

I didn’t take any photos of the Phedimus kamtschaticus in 2021 or 2023. I thought I would take more photos of the plants in the flower beds in 2022, but that didn’t happen. The above photo is the only one I took of the Phedimus kamtschaticus in 2022. Hopefully, I will have time to do better in 2024.

I hope you enjoyed this page and maybe found it useful. If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, I would like to hear from you. Please click on “like” if you visited this page. It helps us bloggers stay motivated. 🙂 You can check out the links below for further reading. The links take you directly to the genus and species of this plant.

 FOR FURTHER READING:
PLANTS OF THE WORLD ONLINE (GENUS/SPECIES)
WIKIPEDIA (GENUS)
INTERNATIONAL CRASSULACEAE NETWORK
MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN
DAVE’S GARDEN
PERENNIALS.COM
NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY
THE NATIONAL GARDENING ASSOCIATION