A Donkey’s Tail plant (Sedum Morganianum), sometimes called Burro’s Tail plant, is an easy-care Succulent Plant native to Mexico. This very attractive and unique looking plant has long hanging stems covered in thick heavy blue-green leaves that overlap like the hair on a donkey’s tail. A Donkey’s Tail plant is very fragile and the leaves easily fall off if the plant is disturbed. These plants do well in hanging baskets where stems have lots of room to cascade down & no one can bump into it. Under the right conditions, a Donkey’s Tail plant may produce star-shaped flowers in pink, red, or lavender during the spring and summer.

Light:
Sedum morganianum likes bright shade or partial sun. It will burn in strong, hot sun. Mine gets morning sun which it prefers. And now, because my neighbor cut down two of his pine trees last year, it gets some afternoon sun too. The stems that are getting too much sun are a pale green. This plant should ideally be a lovely blue-green.

Watering:
All those leaves store water so be sure not to overwater it. It will rot out if you do. My Burro’s Tail is well established (around 5 years old) so I water it every 10-14 days but give it a thorough drink. Watering this way also helps some of the salts (from the water and fertilizers) to flush out of the pot. The rainwater mine gets in the winter helps with that. In other words, don’t splash and go every other day.

In the growing season, when the days are warmer and longer, I water it more often every 9-11 days. As a rule, plants in clay pots will dry out faster as will larger plants in smaller pots. Adjust accordingly as well as to the weather conditions.

Soil:
Like any other succulent, this one needs good drainage. The water needs to drain out of it fast so it’s best to use a mix specially formulated for cactus and succulents. I buy mine at California Cactus Center near Pasadena in case you live in that area. Or, you can add horticultural grade sand and perlite (or fine lava rock, gravel or pumice) to lighten up whatever potting soil you have.