Raised by the German nurseryman Georg Arends, this plant was released into cultivation in 1955. It has several synonyms, and is frequently referred to as Sedum spectabile ‘Autumn Joy’ and S. telephium ‘Herbstfreude’. ‘Autumn Joy’ has long been valued for reliably flowering in late summer and autumn, when it produces flat corymbs of star-shaped flowers, which are greenish-pink in bud, opening to pale pink and maturing to deep pink. The flowers are held aloft fleshy stems and alternate, succulent, toothed leaves. In the garden ‘Autumn Joy’ thrives in a well-drained position in full sun, though it will also cope with light shade. Belonging to the Crassulaceae the genus Sedum contains 400 species from rocky areas of the northern hemisphere and South America.