Lavender and Old Lace hens and chicks (Sempervivum ‘Lavender and Old Lace’) is a historic, award-winning succulent that’s been captivating gardeners with its soft, romantic coloring since well before most modern cultivars existed. Hybridized by Helen Payne, one of the pioneering figures in American sempervivum breeding, this cultivar earned the Sempervivum Society’s prestigious Gold Rosette Award in 1975, a recognition of exceptional beauty and garden merit that it continues to deserve today. Hardy in USDA zones 3 through 9, it’s an incredibly tough, cold-tolerant, evergreen perennial that thrives in conditions ranging from bitterly cold northern winters to hot, dry summer heat, asking almost nothing from the gardener in return.

Lavender and Old Lace forms medium to large rosettes of fleshy, succulent leaves in a smoky gray-green base color that shifts through soft lavender, rosy pink, and silvery blue tones depending on the season, light exposure, and temperature. The color palette is subtle and sophisticated rather than bold, evoking exactly the kind of vintage, antique charm that the name suggests. A delicate fringe of fine, silvery cilia along the leaf edges gives the rosettes a frosty, lace-like appearance that’s especially noticeable in bright light. In winter, the foliage deepens to a darker red or burgundy, adding yet another seasonal color dimension to an already dynamic plant. Individual rosettes typically reach 3 to 5 inches across, and the plant spreads 6 to 18 inches wide as the mother “hen” produces offsets, or “chicks,” on short stolons that radiate outward.

Like all sempervivums, this cultivar is monocarpic, meaning each individual rosette flowers once and then dies, but the colony perpetuates itself indefinitely through the constant production of new offsets. The star-shaped, pink flowers appear on thick stalks in summer and attract bees and butterflies. Lavender and Old Lace thrives in full sun to mostly sunny conditions and demands sharply drained, gritty soil. It’s deer resistant, drought tolerant, and virtually maintenance-free. In the landscape, it’s a natural fit for rock gardens, stone walls, containers, fairy gardens, green roofs, troughs, crevice gardens, and any sunny nook or cranny where a tough, beautiful, low-growing succulent can take hold and thrive.

Plant care

Watering

Sempervivums are among the most drought-tolerant perennials available, and Lavender and Old Lace is no exception. Once established, it needs very little supplemental water and actually performs better on the dry side than with regular moisture. During the first few weeks after planting, water lightly to help the roots anchor, then back off significantly. In average climates with any regular rainfall, established in-ground plants rarely need any additional irrigation at all.

During the active growing season in spring and summer, a weekly watering encourages faster offset production and slightly larger rosettes, but it’s entirely optional. The plant will grow perfectly well without it, just a bit more slowly. In extremely hot, dry climates, an occasional deep watering during prolonged drought keeps the plant looking plump and healthy rather than shriveled.

The most critical watering rule is to never let the plant sit in wet soil. Overwatering and poor drainage are the fastest ways to kill a sempervivum. The crown and roots are highly susceptible to rot in saturated conditions. Container-grown plants should be watered only when the soil is thoroughly dry, and pots must have drainage holes. In humid climates with regular summer rain, excellent drainage is even more important than withholding the hose.

Soil and planting

Sharp drainage is the single most important soil requirement. Lavender and Old Lace thrives in gritty, lean, rocky, sandy, and gravelly soils that would starve most garden plants. It performs beautifully in poor soil and actually produces its best color and tightest rosette form in lean conditions. Rich, fertile, moisture-retentive soil promotes soft, floppy, overly green growth that’s more susceptible to rot and less colorful than the compact, richly tinted rosettes that develop in lean ground.

If your native soil is heavy clay, amend it heavily with coarse sand, perlite, pumice, fine gravel, or crushed stone to create a fast-draining mix, or plant in raised beds, troughs, or containers filled with a gritty succulent or cactus soil blend. A good homemade mix is roughly equal parts potting soil, coarse sand or perlite, and fine gravel or crushed stone.

Plant in full sun for the best color, tightest form, and most prolific offset production. Lavender and Old Lace tolerates partial shade, especially afternoon shade in hot climates, but too much shade causes the rosettes to stretch and lose their compact form, and the distinctive lavender-pink coloring fades to a more muted green.

Set each rosette so the base sits right at the soil surface. Don’t bury the rosette or plant it too deeply, as this promotes crown rot. A top-dressing of pea gravel, crushed stone, or coarse grit around the plants keeps the crown dry, reflects heat and light back toward the foliage, and gives the planting a polished, natural appearance. Space plants 6 to 8 inches apart if you want them to fill in as a ground cover, or set individual rosettes into crevices in stone walls, between pavers, or in the pockets of strawberry pots and hypertufa troughs.

Fertilizing

Sempervivums need virtually no fertilizer, and Lavender and Old Lace is no exception. These plants evolved in thin, rocky, nutrient-poor alpine soils, and too much fertility works against them, promoting soft, stretched growth that lacks the compact beauty and rich coloring that make them so appealing. In most situations, no fertilizer is needed at all.

If growth seems unusually sluggish or the plant looks pale and lackluster despite adequate light, a very light application of a balanced, diluted liquid fertilizer once in early spring is the most you should offer. For container-grown sempervivums, a single light feeding at the start of the growing season is sufficient for the entire year. Always err on the side of less rather than more.

Offset management

The charming “hens and chicks” growth pattern is the defining characteristic of sempervivums. The mother rosette (the hen) produces smaller offsets (the chicks) on short stolons that radiate outward from the base. Over time, a single rosette grows into a dense, spreading cluster that can fill a considerable area.

You can manage this spread in several ways. The simplest approach is to let the colony expand naturally, which creates a beautiful, quilted carpet of rosettes in varying sizes. If the planting outgrows its space, simply pull up unwanted chicks and transplant or share them. Chicks that have developed their own roots can be separated from the mother plant at any time during the growing season and replanted immediately. Even unrooted offsets will root quickly when placed on gritty, well-drained soil.

If you prefer a tidier look, periodically thin the colony by removing excess chicks. This gives the remaining rosettes more room to develop fully and keeps the planting looking intentional rather than crowded. The removed offsets make excellent gifts, swaps, and material for new plantings.

Pests and diseases

Lavender and Old Lace is remarkably trouble-free. Sempervivums have very few pest or disease problems in the right growing conditions. Root rot and crown rot from overwatering or poor drainage are the most common issues, and they’re entirely preventable through proper soil and watering practices.

Mealybugs occasionally infest the crevices between leaves, appearing as cottony white clusters. A cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol applied directly to the insects is an effective spot treatment, or horticultural oil and insecticidal soap can be used for broader coverage. Aphids sometimes colonize flower stalks in summer but are rarely a concern on the rosettes themselves. Vine weevil larvae can feed on roots in containers, causing unexplained wilting and decline. Using a gritty, inorganic soil mix and inspecting root zones during repotting help catch this pest early.

Rust can occasionally appear as small, orange-brown pustules on the leaves, particularly during wet weather. Removing affected leaves, improving air circulation, and ensuring the crown stays dry usually resolve the issue. In extremely wet climates with heavy summer rain, providing overhead protection, such as a small rain shield or placing plants under the overhang of a roof, helps prevent moisture-related problems.

Winter care

Sempervivums are among the most cold-hardy succulents in the world, and Lavender and Old Lace is tough to zone 3, surviving temperatures well below zero without difficulty. It actually needs a cold winter dormancy period to maintain its health and vigor, which is one reason it performs poorly in tropical climates that don’t provide a proper rest period.

No winter protection is needed in any of its recommended zones. The rosettes may draw in slightly, becoming more compact and developing their deepest winter coloring, often a dramatic shift toward reddish-burgundy tones. This color change is normal and one of the plant’s most attractive seasonal features. Under a blanket of snow, sempervivums are perfectly insulated and emerge in spring ready to grow.

The one winter risk, as with all seasons, is wet soil. Frozen, waterlogged ground can rot the roots and crown even when cold alone wouldn’t cause any harm. Ensuring good drainage heading into winter, using gravel mulch, and planting on slopes or in raised positions all contribute to reliable winter survival. Container-grown plants in cold climates should be placed in a spot where they receive some precipitation but don’t sit in pooled water. Tipping pots slightly on their side or moving them under a sheltered overhang during the wettest winter months is a practical precaution.

Understanding monocarpic flowering

One aspect of sempervivum biology that sometimes alarms new growers is the monocarpic flowering habit. When a mature rosette reaches the end of its life cycle, typically after three to five years, it sends up a thick, fleshy stalk topped with star-shaped flowers. For Lavender and Old Lace, these flowers are pink and appear in summer. After flowering and setting seed, the blooming rosette dies.

This is completely normal and not a sign of any problem. By the time a hen flowers, it has usually produced numerous chicks that are already established and growing around it. The death of the flowering rosette simply opens up space in the colony for the next generation to fill. You can remove the dead rosette and its flower stalk after it has withered, or let nature take its course as the surrounding chicks naturally close the gap.

Not all rosettes in a colony flower at the same time, so the planting always maintains a mix of rosettes at different stages of development. The colony as a whole is effectively immortal, perpetuating itself indefinitely through offset production even as individual rosettes come and go.

Seasonal color changes

One of the most enchanting qualities of Lavender and Old Lace is its dynamic, season-shifting color palette. Unlike many garden plants that look essentially the same from spring through fall, sempervivums change color throughout the year in response to temperature, light intensity, and day length.

In spring, as growth resumes and temperatures are cool, the rosettes typically display their softest lavender and silvery-blue tones, with the fine cilia fringe giving them a frosty, delicate appearance. Through summer in full sun, the color may warm to include more pink and gray-green tones. In fall, as temperatures drop and days shorten, the coloring begins to intensify. Winter brings the deepest, richest tones, often shifting toward reddish-burgundy, particularly at the leaf bases and on the outer leaves.

This color variability means the plant looks slightly different every time you check on it, which is part of what makes sempervivum collecting so addictive. The best color development occurs in full sun with lean soil and good air circulation. Plants grown in shade or rich soil tend toward a more uniformly green appearance, losing much of the lavender, pink, and silver character that gives this cultivar its name.

Container and creative growing

Lavender and Old Lace is an outstanding candidate for containers and creative planting projects. Its compact size, drought tolerance, and low root requirements make it suited to an almost endless variety of growing situations beyond the conventional garden bed.

Hypertufa troughs and stone troughs are classic homes for sempervivums, where the rough, natural texture of the container complements the rosettes beautifully. Strawberry pots with multiple pockets are perfect for displaying several sempervivum cultivars at once. Shallow bowls, dish gardens, and mixed succulent arrangements all work well, as long as drainage is provided.

Sempervivums can be planted in the crevices of dry-stacked stone walls, where they root into the thin layer of soil between the stones and create a living tapestry over time. They grow on green roofs, in the gaps between flagstone pavers, in old boots and wheelbarrows repurposed as planters, and in vertical living wall frames. Their ability to thrive on almost no soil and almost no water makes them one of the most adaptable plants for creative, unconventional growing situations.

For fairy gardens and miniature landscapes, the rosettes provide scaled-down “trees” and “shrubs” that maintain their form year-round. In terrariums and open-top glass containers, they add living texture and color, though they must have adequate airflow and drainage even in these settings.

Landscape uses

In the traditional landscape, Lavender and Old Lace excels in rock gardens, where it nestles naturally between and over stones, creating the same effect it produces in its wild alpine habitats. Along border edges and walkway margins, a row of sempervivum rosettes provides a low, tidy, evergreen edging that’s completely maintenance-free. In crevice gardens, it fills narrow gaps in rocks and stone with living color.

On slopes and banks where erosion control is needed and soil is thin, sempervivums form a drought-tolerant living ground cover that holds up under harsh conditions. In xeriscapes and gravel gardens, they combine beautifully with other drought-tolerant companions like sedums, dianthus, creeping thyme, and dwarf ornamental grasses. Green roofs and rooftop gardens take advantage of their shallow root system, low weight, and extreme tolerance of heat, cold, wind, and drought.

Mass plantings of multiple sempervivum cultivars, including Lavender and Old Lace alongside varieties with contrasting colors like deep red, bright green, and silver, create a patchwork quilt effect that’s visually stunning and endlessly fascinating up close. Each cultivar’s rosettes form their own colonies that gradually merge into a living tapestry of texture and color.

FAQ

How cold hardy is Lavender and Old Lace? Extremely cold hardy. It’s rated to USDA zone 3, surviving winter temperatures well below negative 30 degrees Fahrenheit. Sempervivums are alpine natives adapted to the harshest mountain conditions, and cold is never a problem. In fact, they need a cold winter dormancy period to thrive and won’t perform well in tropical or subtropical climates without true winter cold.

Why did one of my rosettes die after flowering? This is completely normal monocarpic behavior. Each sempervivum rosette flowers once at the end of its life, then dies. By the time it flowers, it has already produced multiple offsets that continue the colony. Remove the dead rosette and its flower stalk, and the surrounding chicks will fill in the gap.

How do I propagate Lavender and Old Lace? The easiest method is by separating offsets (chicks) from the mother rosette. Simply pull or snip a chick from its stolon and place it on gritty, well-drained soil. It’ll root within a few weeks without any special treatment. You can also scatter unrooted chicks on the surface of prepared soil and mist lightly until they anchor themselves. Propagation is so easy with sempervivums that they practically do it for you.

Does Lavender and Old Lace need full sun? Full sun produces the best color, tightest form, and most prolific offset production. It tolerates partial shade, especially afternoon shade in hot climates, but too much shade causes stretching and color loss. For the rich lavender, pink, and silver tones this cultivar is known for, give it as much sun as possible.

Can I grow Lavender and Old Lace indoors? It’s not ideal as a permanent indoor plant. Sempervivums need intense direct sunlight, strong air circulation, a cold winter dormancy period, and lean soil conditions that are difficult to replicate indoors. They can survive on a very bright, sunny windowsill for a time, but they’ll gradually stretch and lose their compact form and coloring. Outdoors is always the best environment for these plants.

Is Lavender and Old Lace toxic to pets? No. Sempervivums are generally considered non-toxic to dogs, cats, and other household pets. They’re one of the safer succulents to grow in gardens and on patios where pets are present.

How big does Lavender and Old Lace get? Individual rosettes typically reach 3 to 5 inches across, though size varies with growing conditions. The colony as a whole spreads indefinitely through offset production, eventually covering as much space as you allow. For a contained look, periodically remove outward-spreading chicks to keep the planting within bounds.

Why is my sempervivum turning green? Loss of color is almost always caused by insufficient sunlight or overly rich, moist soil. Move the plant to a sunnier location, cut back on watering, and avoid fertilizing. As light exposure increases and the soil dries out, the characteristic lavender, pink, and silver tones should return, especially as cooler fall and winter temperatures trigger deeper coloring.

How long do sempervivums live? Individual rosettes live roughly three to five years before flowering and dying, but the colony is effectively immortal. Through constant offset production, a well-maintained sempervivum planting can persist for decades, continuously renewing itself. Colonies of sempervivums in European gardens and on old stone buildings have been documented for hundreds of years.

Can Lavender and Old Lace grow on a wall? Yes. Sempervivums are classic plants for dry-stacked stone walls, where they root into thin pockets of soil between the stones. They’re also used on green roofs and in vertical planting systems. As long as there’s a small amount of gritty soil for the roots and adequate drainage, they’ll colonize almost any surface that receives sufficient sunlight.