About Hylotelephium telephium (L.) H.Ohba
Hylotelephium telephium (L.) H.Ohba has the synonym Sedum telephium, and is commonly known by many names including orpine, livelong, frog's-stomach, harping Johnny, life-everlasting, live-forever, midsummer-men, Orphan John, witch's moneybags, and garden stonecrop. It is a succulent perennial plant in the Crassulaceae family, native to Eurasia. Its flowers grow in dense clusters, and may be reddish or yellowish-white in color. Many cultivars, often with purplish leaves, are cultivated in gardens, along with hybrids between this species and the closely related Hylotelephium spectabile (iceplant). The hybrid 'Herbstfreude', also called 'Autumn Joy', is especially popular. Occassionally cultivated garden plants escape cultivation and become naturalized in new areas, an event that has already occurred in parts of North America. This species is naturally endemic to the region spanning from Europe to Asia, but has been widely introduced to other areas, most notably North America. It grows in fields, around hedges, on hills, and in gravelly or calcareous soils. In the United Kingdom, it can additionally be found growing in woodland and near hedges. For culinary use, its very young leaves can be eaten raw, and both its young leaves and firm tubers can be cooked. This plant has a history of medicinal use: Romans used it to treat wounds, and in later periods it was used to treat internal ulcers. It has also been used in love-divination practices, which connects to its common name 'livelong'. Because its stems and leaves can retain water after being picked, they were hung in a room where a girl was preparing to marry a boy. If the stems grew together, this sign was interpreted to mean the marriage would be blessed and the girl would be happy. If the stems grew apart, this was taken to mean poor marriage prospects, and if a stem died, the event was seen as a portent of death.
