Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Sempervivum 'Reinhard' (Sempervivum 'Reinhard')cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Reinhard hens and chicks.

More about sempervivum 'reinhard'

About Sempervivum 'Reinhard'

Sempervivum 'Reinhard' · also called Reinhard hens and chicks · houseplant

Sempervivum 'Reinhard' is a popular hybrid houseleek with neat, symmetrical green rosettes crisply edged in dark chocolate-maroon at each leaf tip. The contrast deepens in strong sun and cool weather. It is cold-hardy, drought-tolerant, and freely offsetting, forming tidy colonies in gritty soil. Easy and forgiving, it fails only from overwatering or poor drainage.

Cold limit: USDA 4-8 (hardy outdoors; indoors keep in a cold, very bright spot) · RHS H6 (-20 to 27°C)

Watch for — Overwatering and rot: Soggy soil rots the crown and roots, the leading cause of death. Plant in gritty mix, water only when fully dry, and keep nearly dry through winter.

What sempervivum 'reinhard''s hardiness rating actually means

Yes — sempervivum 'reinhard' is genuinely cold hardy. Rated RHS H6 and USDA 4-8 (hardy outdoors; indoors keep in a cold, very bright spot), it lives outdoors all year and needs winter cold rather than protection from it. Its RHS rating of H6 means: Hardy throughout the UK and northern Europe. On the US scale that maps to USDA 4-8 (hardy outdoors; indoors keep in a cold, very bright spot) — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −20 to −15 °C. Sempervivum 'Reinhard' is built for winter — once established it takes hard frost and snow in its stride.

Concretely, for sempervivum 'reinhard' as it gets too cold:

It tolerates winter lows to about −20 to −15 °C once established.
Below its rated zone, the visible damage is browned or blackened top growth and, in the worst case, a killed crown or root.
First-year, newly planted, or container-grown specimens are noticeably less hardy than established garden plants — the roots are exposed.

Can sempervivum 'reinhard' go outside or overwinter — and where?

Plant it out within USDA 4-8 (hardy outdoors; indoors keep in a cold, very bright spot) and it overwinters with little or no help.
It does not want to come indoors — a warm winter room actually weakens a hardy plant by denying it dormancy.
The real risks in its range are waterlogging, wind-rock on young plants, and a late hard frost on new growth — not ordinary winter cold.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when sempervivum 'reinhard' can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H6 figure above.

Sempervivum 'Reinhard' hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is sempervivum 'reinhard' cold hardy?

Yes — sempervivum 'reinhard' is genuinely cold hardy. Rated RHS H6 and USDA 4-8 (hardy outdoors; indoors keep in a cold, very bright spot), it lives outdoors all year and needs winter cold rather than protection from it. An outdoor plant. Sempervivum 'Reinhard' is hardy across USDA 4-8 (hardy outdoors; indoors keep in a cold, very bright spot); it belongs in the ground or a frost-proof container, not on a windowsill, and many types actively need a cold winter to perform.

What is the minimum temperature sempervivum 'reinhard' can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −20 to −15 °C. Sempervivum 'Reinhard' is built for winter — once established it takes hard frost and snow in its stride.

What hardiness zone is sempervivum 'reinhard'?

Sempervivum 'Reinhard' is rated USDA 4-8 (hardy outdoors; indoors keep in a cold, very bright spot) and RHS H6 — Hardy throughout the UK and northern Europe.

Can sempervivum 'reinhard' survive winter outside?

Plant it out within USDA 4-8 (hardy outdoors; indoors keep in a cold, very bright spot) and it overwinters with little or no help. It does not want to come indoors — a warm winter room actually weakens a hardy plant by denying it dormancy. The real risks in its range are waterlogging, wind-rock on young plants, and a late hard frost on new growth — not ordinary winter cold.

What happens to sempervivum 'reinhard' below its minimum temperature?

It tolerates winter lows to about −20 to −15 °C once established. Below its rated zone, the visible damage is browned or blackened top growth and, in the worst case, a killed crown or root. First-year, newly planted, or container-grown specimens are noticeably less hardy than established garden plants — the roots are exposed.