Mesembryanthemum × 'Red Apple'

Of cultivated hybrid origin from two succulent species native to southern Africa, this succulent perennial grows as a rapidly spreading groundcover. Its many creeping branches carry dense, fleshy foliage and bright reddish flowers with narrow segments around yellow centres. The cultivar derives from Mesembryanthemum cordifolium and Mesembryanthemum haeckelianum. Its creeping stems root where they touch the ground. Red apple plantings can escape into California waterways and wetland margins, where vigorous growth can overwhelm neighboring vegetation. Photographed in Florida.