20 Best Plants For Rock Gardens

Rock gardens are versatile, vibrant, and visually pleasing. You can have a rock garden about anywhere with a bit of research and planning. To get started on designing one of your very own, here are the 20 best plants for rock gardens. 

Whether you’re looking for shrubs, succulents, or perennial plants, there will be plenty in this list to suit your tastes.

What is a rock garden?

Also known as a rockery or an alpine garden, rock gardens feature carefully arranged rocks, stones, and boulders with drought-tolerant plants growing in the gaps and crevices of the rocks for an aesthetic effect.

Rock gardens are perfect for homeowners or first-time gardeners who want a creative and low-maintenance landscape. A key feature of rock gardens is well-drained soil, but you can also include water features and focal points in your rock garden.

20 best plants for rock gardens

There are several plants that are well-suited for rock gardens, but here are the most common staples:

• Perennials: These grow for more than three years and are either evergreen or go dormant in the winter. Perennials come in all shapes, sizes, and plant types, growing as flowers, shrubs, and groundcover.

• Shrubs: When planted to accommodate their mature height and width, rock garden shrubs require little to no maintenance. Shrubs that are allowed to take their natural shape generally do better than heavily pruned shrubs.

• Succulents: These are shallow-rooted plants that don’t do well in wet soil, which causes crown or root rot. In hot climates, succulents benefit from filtered sun or light shade since too much sun can scorch succulents’ leaves. If you are interested in growing a succulent out of its hardiness zone, consider growing it in a pot that can be sunk into the ground in the rock garden.

Out of these varieties, here are the top 20 that would be a wonderful addition to your rock garden:

1. Aloe (aloe vera)

Aloe vera is a succulent that thrives in tropical, semi-tropical, and arid climates. Their pointed, green leaves with white spots have sharp spines along their edges. There are many species of aloe for rock gardens, including century plant, a popular specimen in the West and Southwest. 

Aloe grows best in dry conditions with plenty of light. Aloe only needs to be watered once or twice per week depending on how hot it is.

This plant is both attractive and useful, and is often used to treat burns, cuts, and other skin conditions. The engorged leaves are full of a clear, colorless gel that is used as a topical treatment or taken orally.

• Plant type: Succulent
• USDA hardiness zones: 10 – 12
• Sunlight needs: Full sun and partial shade
• Water needs: Medium 
• Soil preferences: Dry, loamy, and sandy soil with good drainage
• Duration: Year-round
• Mature height: 2 – 3 feet

2. Bugleweed (ajuga reptans)

A member of the mint family, bugleweed is a broadleaf, evergreen to semi-evergreen groundcover that creates a compact, dense mat with small clusters of purple flowers. The oval-shaped leaves are glossy, medium green and grow in tight rosettes.

Bugleweed tolerates heavy foot traffic and can help smother weeds. It’s resistant to rabbits and deer. There are several bugleweed varieties that share similar traits, while offering a diverse range of size and color with the leaves and flowers.

• Plant type: Herbaceous perennial groundcover
• USDA hardiness zones: 3 – 10
• Sunlight needs: Full sun and partial shade
• Water needs: Medium
• Soil preferences: Occasionally wet, clay, loamy, and sandy soil with good drainage
• Duration: Evergreen; flowers in mid to late spring
• Mature height: 6 – 12 inches

3. Cheddar pink (dianthus gratianopolitanus)

This plant gets the name Cheddar from the Cheddar Gorge region of England, their native area, and pink because the flowers many pointed petals look like they’ve been trimmed with pinking shears (saw-toothed scissors that produce a zig-zag pattern instead of a straight cut). They offer a variety of colors for your rock garden, and offer a spicy, clove-like fragrance.

Cheddar pink is deer-resistant and salt-tolerant. But watch out for the leaves! They can cause mild dermatitis if touched or gastrointestinal distress if eaten.

• Plant type: Flowering perennial
• USDA hardiness zones: 4 – 8
• Sunlight needs: Full sun
• Water needs: Low
• Soil preferences: Loose, well-drained, neutral to slightly alkaline soils
• Duration: Evergreen; flowers in spring/early summer
• Mature height: 6 – 12 inches

4. Columbine (aquilegia vulgaris)

Columbine is a short-lived perennial that is a favorite among hummingbirds and other pollinators. Columbines grow in bushy clumps with delicate short-spurred flowers in a variety of colors from blue, pink, violet, and white. The gray-green leaflets are rounded and lobed.

Columbine is rabbit and deer-resistant. It generously self-sows to keep the flowers coming and will need to be cut back as the plant declines.

Certain species of columbine bloom in certain areas. Aquilegia canadensis is native to the eastern U.S., A. alpina in western states, and A. pubescens in California.

• Plant type: Flowering perennial
• USDA hardiness zones: 4 – 8
• Sunlight needs: Full sun to partial shade
• Water needs: Medium
• Soil preferences: Moist but well-drained chalky, clay, loamy, or sandy soil
• Duration: Spring, early summer
• Mature height: 12 inches

5. Creeping phlox (phlox stolonifera)

Creeping phlox is a low-growing, evergreen perennial. This groundcover can withstand hot, dry conditions and is a favorite among hummingbirds and butterflies. They are a colorful addition to any rock garden, with fragrant small, starry, five-petaled blue, pink, purple, and white flowers.

It is deer-resistant and will tolerate light foot traffic. It is a good addition to your rock garden and can be used as edging for flower beds. You also can use creeping phlox to help control erosion along slopes.

• Plant type: Flowering perennial groundcover
• USDA hardiness zones: 5 – 8
• Sunlight needs: Full sun to partial shade
• Water needs: High
• Soil preferences: Moist, well-drained, slightly acidic soil
• Duration: Late spring to summer, evergreen
• Mature height: 6 – 12 inches

6. Creeping thyme (thymus serphyllum)

Creeping thyme is a low-growing, creeping, woody, ornamental groundcover. Like all thymes, creeping thyme tends to be a slow grower. It’s usually evergreen, except in the coldest climates. The plant is hairy and has tiny tubular bell-shaped pink and purple blooms. The thin woody stems have tiny blue-green leaves.

Creeping thyme is edible, especially as a tea, but it is rarely used in cooking. Despite being an aromatic and tasty herb, it’s thankfully deer and rabbit-resistant. It fills in crevices and sprawls over rocks, making it a great addition to your rock garden. It does require regular pruning so that it doesn’t take over.

• Plant type: Flowering perennial groundcover
• USDA hardiness zones: 4 – 9
• Sunlight needs: Full sun
• Water needs: Low
• Soil preferences: Dry, shallow, rocky, sandy, loamy soil
• Duration: Spring and summer
• Mature height: 1 – 3 inches

7. Echeveria (echeveria spp.)

Probably one of the best-known succulents on the market, echeveria is regularly sold as a houseplant in cold climates, and will make itself at home in rock gardens. Echeverias form a tight, colorful rosette that stays low to the ground, and only need to be watered once every 10 days.

The thick, fleshy leaves come in a variety of colors and shapes from gray, sea green and blue-green. They can be pointed or rounded, and they produce light pink or yellow flowers that are attractive to hummingbirds, bees, and other pollinators.

• Plant type: Succulent
• USDA hardiness zones: 9 – 12
• Sunlight needs: Full sun to partial shade
• Water needs: Medium
• Soil preferences: Loamy, sandy soil with good drainage
• Duration: Year-round
• Mature height: 12 inches

8. Hardy geranium (geranium maculatum)

Also known as cranesbill, wild geranium or spotted geranium, this hardy plant is super easy to grow. Hardy geranium has deeply lobed leaves topped with pink or lilac saucer-shaped flowers. The leaves turn a rich red to add fall color to the rock garden. It’s clump-forming and makes good groundcover for any rock garden.

It blooms in spring and periodically throughout the summer, especially when cut back in spring when new growth emerges from the base of the plant. Hardy geranium self sows and is deer and rabbit-resistant. It attracts pollinators and its edible fruits provide a food source to local wildlife.

• Plant type: Flowering perennial
• USDA hardiness zones: 3 – 11
• Sunlight needs: Partial sun
• Water needs: Medium
• Soil preferences: Moist to slightly dry, rich, loamy soil
• Duration: Late spring/early summer; may re-bloom in late summer, fall color
• Mature height: 24 inches

9. Haworthia (haworthia spp.)

A dwarf succulent, haworthia is distinguished by its growth. Pointy columns with white specs emerge from the base of the plant. The leaves are translucent at the top. And full sunlight brings out the best color.

Haworthia grows in very harsh conditions and are an easy succulent to grow. It’s popular as a houseplant but does well in rock gardens, too. It’s sensitive to frost and over watering can cause root rot.

• Plant type: Succulent
• USDA hardiness zones: 9 – 11
• Sunlight needs: Partial shade
• Water needs: Low
• Soil preferences: Dry, sandy soil with good drainage
• Duration: Year-round
• Mature height: 3 – 5 inches

10. Hens and chicks (sempervivum tectorum)

One of the best hardy succulents for cold climates, hens and chicks grow well in rock gardens. Hens and chicks have a rosette form and clusters of many pointed flowers. 

The hen, or parent rosette, blooms and sets seed when it’s two or three years old. After it blooms, the hen dies, but not before forming another rosette, the chick, to take its place. You can cut the flower for indoor arrangements, but it won’t stop the flowering rosette from dying. Cut off the dead rosette when the chick forms.

Because of their versatility, colors, and forms, hens and chicks are so popular they have become collector’s items.

• Plant type: Succulent
• USDA hardiness zones: 3 – 8
• Sunlight needs: Full sun to partial shade
• Water needs: Low
• Soil preferences: Dry, loamy, and sandy soil with good drainage
• Duration: Year-round, bloom mid-summer
• Mature height: 6 inches

11. Ice plant (delosperma cooperi)

Ice plant, also known as hardy ice plant, has soft, fleshy green leaves covered with purplish-pink many-petaled flowers similar to daisies that offer a carpet of color to your rock garden landscape.

It is tolerant of heat, salt, and drought, so it thrives in full sun and dry, sandy soil. Hardy ice plant attracts butterflies and bees, and works as excellent groundcover and erosion control.

• Plant type: Perennial groundcover
• USDA hardiness zones: 5 – 9
• Sunlight needs: Full sun
• Water needs: Low
• Soil preferences: Dry, sandy soil with good drainage
• Duration: Late spring to summer 
• Mature height: 1 – 2 inches

12. Kalanchoe (kalanchoe blossfeldiana)

Known as a flowering houseplant, Kalanchoe is a succulent perennial that does great in rock gardens. It has dark green scallop-edged leaves and an upright, multi-branched growth habit. It’s long-blooming, with clusters of yellow, red, pink, or white flowers that last for weeks. 

For those in northern climates, this might be a succulent you’d grow in a pot in the rock garden so you could take it indoors in winter. Kalanchoe is salt-tolerant but it can be easily blown over by heavy gusts of wind.

• Plant type: Succulent
• USDA hardiness zones: 9 – 11
• Sunlight needs: Full sun
• Water needs: Medium
• Soil preferences: Well-drained sandy soil
• Duration: Year-round
• Mature height: 6 – 12 inches

13. Lavender (lavandula angustifolia)

Commonly known as English lavender, this fragrant plant is a favorite of gardeners everywhere, and is just at home in the rock garden as it is in the flower garden. It is hardy and easy to grow, it is a bushy, compact shrub with delicate wispy purple flowers on upright stems.

The plant needs to stay upright all winter, and the stems need to be cut back as new growth begins in spring. It is both deer and rabbit-resistant, but is attractive to bees and butterflies.

• Plant type: Shrub
• USDA hardiness zones: 5 – 9
• Sunlight needs: Full sun
• Water needs: Low
• Soil preferences: Well-drained, chalky, sandy, and loamy soil
• Duration: Flowers in spring and summer, silver-gray foliage in fall and winter
• Mature height: 12 – 24 inches

14. Moss phlox (phlox subulata)

Moss phlox is a herbaceous perennial that blooms loose clusters of pink and purple flowers in the spring. The green needle-like foliage resembles moss, which is how it gets its name. Moss phlox is great for rock gardens, edging, and groundcover. It attracts hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees but is deer-resistant.

Moss phlox can tolerate hot and dry conditions better than other species of phlox. The stems should be cut back when the plant is done flowering to encourage dense growth and help maintain its shape.

• Plant type: Flowering perennial
• USDA hardiness zones: 3 – 9
• Sunlight needs: Full sun
• Water needs: Medium
• Soil preferences: Moist loamy, sandy soil with good drainage
• Duration: Mid to late spring
• Mature height: 4 – 6 inches

16. Pasqueflower (pulsatilla vulgaris)

Also known as meadow anemone, or wind flower, this perennial herb has bell-shaped purple, cream, or white flowers and hairy stems. It is a member of the buttercup family and is easy to grow. They’re great for rock gardens, borders, and alpine beds.

This plant is highly toxic if eaten in large quantities. It’s rabbit-resistant and has no serious issues with diseases or insects.

• Plant type: Flowering perennial
• USDA hardiness zones: 4 – 8
• Sunlight needs: Full sun
• Water needs: Medium
• Soil preferences: Well-drained chalky, loamy or sandy soil
• Duration: Early to late spring
• Mature height: 9 – 12 inches

17. Red hot poker (kniphofia spp)

Also known as the poker plant or the torch lily, these beauties look like red hot pokers poking out of the ground. Long-blooming, the red, orange, yellow, or creamy white flowers and sword-like leaves will add height to your rock garden. 

Red hot poker should be planted in clusters of uneven numbers for the best show and cut back in the fall. They are salt-tolerant and rabbit and deer-resistant.

• Plant type: Flowering perennial
• USDA hardiness zones: 5 – 9
• Sunlight needs: Full sun to partial shade
• Water needs: Medium
• Soil preferences: Moist, neutral soil
• Duration: Summer
• Mature height: 24 – 36 inches

18. Rock cress (arabis hybrida)

Also called arabis, rock cress is a that is easy to grow and works wonders as a groundcover Its white, purple, blue, or pink flowers appear in the early spring are so packed that they hide the foliage, and will make a colorful addition to your rock garden. It’s a favorite among butterflies thanks to its nectar-rich blooms. 

Rock cress is both deer, rabbit, and drought resistant. The foliage will need to be cut back to promote dense, healthy foliage, otherwise the branches will begin to grow bare.

• Plant type: Flowering perennial
• USDA hardiness zones: 4 – 7
• Sunlight needs: Full sun
• Water needs: Medium
• Soil preferences: Dry, clay, sandy, or loamy soil
• Duration: Spring to summer
• Mature height: 6 – 12 inches

19. Sedum (sedum crassulaceae)

Sometimes called stonecrop, there are 600 species of sedum, many of which do great in rock gardens. They are easy to grow and are low maintenance. They are creeping plants with five pointed blooms of various colors. Stonecrops are very attractive to pollinators.

Some grow low like groundcovers, some are evergreen, and some are tall and filled with pollinators. Many have winter interest, so cut back sedum in early spring as new growth emerges from the base of the plant. 

There are a few native species, including S. ternatum, an Eastern United States shade-loving woodland sedum, and S. lanceolatum in the Western United States. Stonecrops are known for their heat and drought tolerance and they tend to be rabbit and deer-resistant. 

• Plant type: Flowering perennial
• USDA hardiness zones: 3 – 11
• Sunlight needs: Full sun to partial shade
• Water needs: Low
• Soil preferences: Poor soil
• Duration: Spring to late summer
• Mature height: 2 – 24 inches

20. Snow-in-summer (cerastium tomentosum)

An excellent groundcover, snow-in-summer gets its name by covering the ground with a dense carpet of star-shaped white blooms, resembling snow. It has wooly stems and leaves, and self seeds.

Though it can thrive in many different soils, the plant is susceptible to root rot without good drainage, and it does not take well to areas with plenty of foot traffic. It is deer and drought resistant, and is an attractive plant to bees and other pollinators.

• Plant type: Herbaceous perennial groundcover
• USDA hardiness zones: 3 – 7
• Sunlight needs: Full sun to partial shade
• Water needs: Low
• Soil preferences: Poor, dry, sandy, well-drained soils
• Duration: Late spring to early summer
• Mature height: 6 – 12 inches

How to choose plants for a rock garden

Here’s how to select the best plants for your rock garden:

• Use the USDA Hardiness Zone classification to check if the plants you want can survive in your area. 
• Check the plant’s soil requirements, and make sure your garden has compatible soil.
• Look for pictures of the plants when they mature and bloom to see if they are the right size and color for your vision.
• Make sure the amount of shade or sun you get in your lawn is compatible with the plants you want.

If done well, your rock garden can be both practical and visually appealing. You should make sure to pick plants that are evergreen or mix seasonal plants so your garden is always vibrant no matter the season. 

You can always consult with a local gardening pro or your local plant nursery for advice if you have any doubts about your selection.

FAQ about the best plants for rock gardens

What is the best base for a rock garden?

Rock garden soil mixtures typically include varying proportions of gravel, sand and soil. Coarse builder’s sand works exceptionally well in rock gardening, as well as thin spun landscape fabric or heavy-duty woven fabric as mulch.

How deep should you make a rock garden bed?

The depth of your rock layer depends on the size of the rocks.

• 1-inch rocks: Layer 2 inches deep 
• 1- to 3-inch rocks: Layer 1-3 inches deep 
• 3- to 8-inch rocks: Layer 3-8 inches deep

What plants can grow on rocks without soil?

Cacti and mosses can live on rocks, even breaking down the rocks into soil over time. As the roots grow they widen the cracks in the rocks, breaking rocks into pieces.

When to call a pro

If you need help designing your rock garden, contact a local gardening professional. But don’t forget you still have the rest of your lawn to take care of. For landscaping, pruning, mowing, and trimming, contact a local lawn care pro. Efficient and affordable service is right at your fingertips.

Main Image Credit: Zipity11 | Wikimedia Commons | CC BY-SA 3.0