SEDUM, ORPINE; a genus of the pentagynia order, belonging to the decandria class of plants. There are 19 species; of which the most remarkable are,
1. The telephium, common orpine, or live-long, hath a perennial root, composed of many knobby tubercles, sending up erect, round, succulent stalks, branching half a yard or two feet high, garnished with oblong, plane, serrated, succulent leaves, and the stalks terminated by a leafy corymbus of flowers, of
different colours in the varieties. This species is an inhabitant of woods and dry places in England, &c. but has been long a resident of gardens for variety and medical use.
2. The anacampferos, or decumbent ever-green Italian orpine, hath a fibrous perennial root, decumbent or trailing stalks, wedge-shaped entire leaves, and the stalks terminated by a corymbus of purple flowers. 3. The rupestre, rock sedum, or stone-crop of St Vincent's rock, hath slender, trailing, purple stalks; short, thick, awl-shaped, succulent, glaucous leaves in clusters, quinquifoliously imbricated round the stalks, and the stalks terminated by roundish cymose bunches of bright yellow flowers. It grows naturally on St Vincent's rock near Bristol, and other rocky places in Europe. 4. The aizoon, or Siberian yellow orpine, hath a tuberculate, fibrous perennial root; many upright, round, succulent stalks, a foot high; lanceolate, plane, serrated, thickish leaves; and the stalks terminated by a close-fitting cymose cluster of bright yellow flowers. 5. The reflexum, reflexed small yellow sedum, or prick-madam, hath a slender fibrous perennial root; small trailing succulent stalks, garnished with thick, awl-shaped, succulent leaves sparsely, the lower ones recurved, and the stalks terminated by reflexed spikes of bright yellow flowers. It grows naturally on old walls and buildings in England, &c. 6. The acre, acrid sedum, common stone-crop of the wall, or wall-pepper, hath small fibrous roots, very slender succulent stalks four or five inches high, very small, sub-oval, gibbous, erect, alternate leaves, close together, and the stalks terminated by trifid-cymose bunches of small yellow flowers. This sort grows abundantly on rocks, old walls, and tops of buildings, almost every where, which often appear covered with the flowers in summer. 7. The hexangularis, or hexangular stone-crop, hath a fibrous perennial root; thick, short, succulent stalks; small, sub-oval, gibbous, erect leaves close together, arranged six ways imbricated, and the stalks terminated by bunches of yellow flowers. It grows on rocky and other dry places in England, &c. 8. The album, or white stone-crop, hath fibrous perennial roots; trailing slender stalks, six or eight inches long; oblong, obtuse, sessile, spreading leaves; and the stalks terminated by branchy cymose bunches of white flowers. This grows on old walls, rocks, and buildings in England, &c. 9. The hispanicum, or Spanish sedum, hath fibrous perennial roots, crowned with clusters of taper, acute, succulent leaves; slender succulent stalks, four or five inches high, garnished also with taper leaves, and terminated by downy cymose clusters of white flowers.
All these species of sedum are hardy herbaceous succulent perennials, durable in root, but mostly annual in stalk, &c. which, rising in spring, flower in June, July, and August, in different sorts; the flowers consisting universally of five spreading petals, generally crowning the stalks numerously in corymbose and cymose bunches and spikes, appearing tolerably conspicuous, and are succeeded by plenty of seeds in autumn, by which they may be propagated, also abundantly by parting the roots, and by slips or cuttings of the stalks in summer; in all of which methods they readily grow and spread very fast into tufted bunches:
being all of succulent growth, they consequently delight most in dry soils, or in any dry rubbishy earth.
Uses. As flowering plants, they are mostly employed to embellish rock-work, ruins, and the like places, planting either the roots, or cuttings of the stalks, in a little mud or any moist soil at first, placing it in the crevices, where they will soon root and fix themselves, and spread about very agreeably. For economical purposes, the reflexum and rupestre are cultivated in Holland and Germany, to mix with lettuce in salads. The wall-pepper is so acrid, that it blisters the skin when applied externally. Taken inwardly, it excites vomiting. In scorbutic cases and quartan agues, it is said to be an excellent medicine under proper management. Goats eat it; cows, horses, sheep, and swine, refuse it.