The Crassulaceae, also known as the stonecrop family or the orpine family, are a diverse family of dicotyledon flowering plants characterized by succulent leaves and a unique form of photosynthesis, known as Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM). Flowers generally have five floral parts. Crassulaceae are usually herbaceous but there are some subshrubs, and relatively few treelike or aquatic plants. Crassulaceae are a medium-sized monophyletic family in the core eudicots, among the order Saxifragales, whose diversity has made infrafamilial classification very difficult. The family includes approximately 1,400 species and 34–35 genera, depending on the circumscription of the genus Sedum, and distributed over three subfamilies. Members of the Crassulaceae are found worldwide, but mostly in the Northern Hemisphere and southern Africa, typically in dry and/or cold areas where water may be scarce, although a few are aquatic.
Sedum is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Crassulaceae, members of which are commonly known as stonecrops. The genus has been described as containing up to 600 species, subsequently reduced to 400–500. They are leaf succulents found primarily in the Northern Hemisphere, but extending into the southern hemisphere in Africa and South America. The plants vary from annual and creeping herbs to shrubs. The plants have water-storing leaves. The flowers usually have five petals, seldom four or six. There are typically twice as many stamens as petals. Various species formerly classified as Sedum are now in the segregate genera Hylotelephium and Rhodiola.
Prometheum is a genus of plants in the family Crassulaceae.
Petrosedum rupestre, also known as reflexed stonecrop, Jenny's stonecrop, blue stonecrop, stone orpine, prick-madam and trip-madam, is a species of perennial succulent flowering plant in the family Crassulaceae, native to northern, central, and southern Europe.
Hylotelephium telephium, known as orpine, livelong, frog's-stomach, harping Johnny, life-everlasting, live-forever, midsummer-men, Orphan John and witch's moneybags, is a succulent perennial groundcover of the family Crassulaceae native to Eurasia. The flowers are held in dense heads and can be reddish or yellowish-white. A number of cultivars, often with purplish leaves, are grown in gardens as well as hybrids between this species and the related Hylotelephium spectabile (iceplant), especially the popular 'Herbstfreude'. Occasionally garden plants may escape and naturalise as has happened in parts of North America.
Rhodiola is a genus of perennial plants in the family Crassulaceae that resemble Sedum and other members of the family. Like sedums, Rhodiola species are often called stonecrops. Some authors merge Rhodiola into Sedum.
Phedimus spurius, the Caucasian stonecrop or two-row stonecrop, is a species of flowering plant in the family Crassulaceae. It is still widely listed in the literature as Sedum spurium.
Hylotelephium spectabile is a species of flowering plant in the stonecrop family Crassulaceae, native to China and Korea. Its common names include showy stonecrop, iceplant, and butterfly stonecrop.
Rosularia is a small genus of the family Crassulaceae. It includes about 28-35 species from Europe, the Himalayas, and northern Africa.
Hylotelephium cauticola, the cliff stonecrop, syn. Sedum cauticola, is a species of flowering plant in the family Crassulaceae, native to Hokkaido, Japan. Growing to 8 cm (3 in) tall by 30 cm (12 in) wide, it is a carpet-forming succulent perennial with trailing stems of pink-tinged grey-green round leaves, and purplish pink star-shaped flowers in autumn.
Hylotelephium telephioides is a flowering plant in the stonecrop family Crassulaceae. Its common names include Allegheny stonecrop and live-forever. Its native range in the USA extends from Georgia to Illinois and New York, and it has introduced populations in Ontario. In the wild, it is found on rock outcrops, especially at moderate to high elevations.
Aizopsis is a genus of the succulent family Crassulaceae, found in east Asia.
Hylotelephium erythrostictum, commonly known as garden stonecrop, is a herbaceous perennial plant in the genus Hylotelephium, belonging to the family Crassulaceae.
Orostachys is a genus of the succulent family Crassulaceae that contains about 15 species. It is a biennial herb growing in China, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Mongolia, Russia. Eight species occur in China.
Hylotelephium, syn. Sedum, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Crassulaceae. Various species have been hybridized by horticulturalists to create new cultivars. Many of the newer ones are patented.
Sempervivoideae is the largest of three subfamilies in the Saxifragales family Crassulaceae, with about 20–30 genera with succulent leaves. Unlike the two smaller subfamilies, it is distributed in temperate climates. The largest genus in this subfamily is Sedum, with about 470 species.
Hylotelephium cyaneum, commonly known as the azure stonecrop, is a perennial mat-forming succulent groundcover plant of the family Crassulaceae. Its native range is in eastern Siberia and Russian Far East.
Sedum nuttallii, the yellow stonecrop, is a species of flowering plant in the family Crassulaceae, native to the central United States. An annual, it is typically found growing in thin soils that form over sandstone or granite.
Sedum nanifolium, the dwarf stonecrop, is a species of flowering plant in the family Crassulaceae, native to southwestern Texas and northeastern Mexico. A mat-forming perennial, it is found growing in limestone soils at 1,200 to 2,000 m in elevation.
Sedum nevii, Nevius' stonecrop, is a species of flowering plant in the family Crassulaceae. It is native to the US states of Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia, at elevations around 1,000 m (3,300 ft). A decumbent perennial reaching 10 cm (4 in), it is usually found growing on top of mosses and lichens, themselves growing on rocky crevices, ledges, and even talus typically composed of quartzite and gneiss. Among other characters, it can be distinguished from its congeners by its red anthers, and by the pronounced lips of the adaxial suture of its follicles.
