Hylotelephium telephium – Stonecrop

Stonecrop can be found growing wild in sunny, dry areas. It has succulent leaves and fleshy stems. The plant produces pink, star-shaped flowers from late summer to early fall.

Young stonecrop leaves are edible raw or cooked. Leaves can be added raw to a salad or used in soup as a thickener. Leaves get bitter as they age.

 

Leaves can also be added to water and steeped overnight to make sedum juice. The liquid can be strained the next morning and drank or used for skin conditions, similarly to aloe vera.

In the summer-fall, flowers can be eaten raw or turned into tea.

 

Rhizomes are also edible boiled or pickled.

 

Stonecrop is high in calcium and vitamins A and C. It has laxative effects and has been used to balance hormones.

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Written by Amy Demers, founder of the Connecticut Foraging Club. To learn more about foraging in Connecticut, check out our upcoming classes.