Photo: Forest & Kim Starr / CC BY 3.0 / Wikimedia Commons

Sesuvium

Sesuvium portulacastrum

A fleshy, glossy, salt-loving coastal groundcover that grows where little else will. It forms a low green-to-purplish mat on sand and saline ground with very little water.

Mature size0.1–0.3 m tall, 0.5–1.5 m spreadGrowthFastSunFull sunWaterVery low

Heat: 5 of 5

Salt: 5 of 5

Drought: 4 of 5

Shade: 2 of 5

Ease of care: 5 of 5

Use in a design Get it looked after

Season

Through the Dubai year

How Sesuvium behaves through Dubai's seasons, month by month.

JJan

FFeb

MMar

AApr

MMay

JJun

JJul

AAug

SSep

OOct

NNov

DDec

Avg high °C

24°

26°

29°

34°

38°

40°

42°

40°

36°

31°

27°

Best planting window

Oct – Dec

Jan – Mar

Spring growth flush

Mar – May

Pink-purple flowers

Mar – May

Sep – Nov

Trim the edges

Best planting window: Oct–Mar
Cooler months let the mat establish before summer.
Spring growth flush: Mar–May
Pink-purple flowers: Mar–May, Sep–Nov
The flowers open seasonally and close at night or under cloud.
Trim the edges: Mar, Sep
A light trim once or twice a year keeps the mat in bounds.

Sesuvium is a succulent evergreen, so the mat looks much the same through the year, with a purplish flush in strong light. It grows steadily through the warm months, and the small pink-purple flowers open seasonally, closing at night or under cloud. Peak summer sun suits it, and it needs little or no extra water once established. Trim the edges once or twice a year, in March and September, to keep the mat in bounds. The easiest planting window runs through the cooler months, from October to March.

Meet the plant

Meet the Sesuvium

Meet sesuvium, the groundcover that grows where the sea leaves its salt behind. Its thick, glossy leaves are tiny water tanks, and it spreads in a low, green-to-purplish mat across sand, limestone and the edges of tidal flats, in places where most gardens simply give up.

The technicality is that succulence. Stored water in the leaf lets the plant ride out both salt and drought, and a 2025 review describes it as continuing to grow without visible damage even under extreme salinity. It is a pioneer: the kind of plant that moves in first on bare, salty ground and holds it for those that follow.

The mood is quiet and honest to place. The flowers are small, pink-purple stars that close at night or under cloud, and the mat itself is a calm, glossy green that says coast and desert rather than lawn and border, which is exactly the right note for a garden rooted in its surroundings.

Sesuvium is the groundcover of the shoreline. Sesuvium portulacastrum, called sea purslane or shoreline purslane, is a sprawling perennial herb of the iceplant family that Wikipedia records as a coastal and mangrove-area plant on sandy clay, coastal limestone, tidal flats and salt marshes in much of the world. It forms a low mat up to about 30 cm high, with thick stems up to a metre long and smooth, fleshy, glossy green leaves 1 to 7 cm long that sometimes flush purplish. The flowers are tiny, about half a centimetre across, pink to purple and star-shaped, and they close at night or under cloud.

The technicality is succulence and salt. A 2025 review in Plant Science Today describes sea purslane as a pioneer species of coastal areas that thrives in sandy and saline environments, is highly resistant to salinity and drought, and continues to grow without visible damage even under extreme salinity. It is also a candidate for restoring salt-affected soil; in one experiment it extracted 77.8 percent of added sodium over ninety days. A Dubai nursery, Wahat Al Sahraa, lists it as a hardy, salt-tolerant succulent groundcover for coastal and arid landscapes, needing very low water once established, full sun and sandy, well-drained or saline soil.

For a Dubai garden that makes it the plant for the places where others fail: beachfront beds, banks and slopes that need erosion control, and corners irrigated with brackish water. It is a low, spreading groundcover, not a lawn substitute, and it needs the occasional trim at the edges to keep it in bounds. In coastal beds it is a sensible alternative to invasive groundcovers such as Wedelia, and it sits well with native shrubs such as Arak and Samr.

Design

Where to use it

Coastal groundcoverBank and slope coverSaline-bed fillerNative-habitat planting

Use it where salt, sand and sun are the challenge: beachfront beds, slopes that need erosion control and corners watered with brackish supplies. Plant it in full sun in sandy, free-draining ground rather than rich beds, and edge it with stone or a hard border so the mat stays where you want it. Keep it for looking at rather than walking on, and trim its edges once or twice a year.

Arak

The native arak shrub shares sesuvium's tolerance of salt and sun, and the low mat covers the ground at the shrub's feet in a coherent native scheme.

Samr

A native tree of the same dry, saline landscape, samr gives light shade and structure above the groundcover.

Tamarisk

Tamarisk's very high salt tolerance suits the same saline, coastal beds, with the groundcover filling the open soil beneath.

Date Palm

Date palm's tolerance of salt and heat matches the groundcover's, and the low mat finishes the base of a palm planting in a coastal garden.

Care guide

How to grow it in Dubai

Watering: Summer: Very little once established; a Dubai nursery lists very low water needs, and it copes with saline irrigation.
Winter: Rain alone is usually enough.
Establishment: Water every two or three days for the first month, then taper off as the mat establishes.
Soil: Sandy, well-drained or saline soil. Wikipedia records it on sandy clay, coastal limestone and sandstone, tidal flats and salt marshes; avoid rich, damp beds.
Feeding: None needed; it grows on poor, saline ground.
Pruning: Trim the edges once or twice a year to keep the mat in bounds, as the nursery advises.
Planting: Plant in full sun in sandy, well-drained soil, spaced so the mat fills the bed within a season or two, and edge the bed with stone or a hard border.
Pests: Generally trouble-free

Avoid these

Common mistakes

Planting it in rich, constantly damp beds. A sandy, free-draining, even saline soil suits it far better.
Expecting it to take foot traffic. It is a groundcover for looking at rather than a lawn substitute.
Putting it in shade. It is a plant of bright, open coasts and does best in full sun.
Never trimming the edges. The mat spreads, and an annual edge trim keeps it where you want it.
Watering it like a lawn. Established plants need very little, and overwatering works against its coastal nature.

Extra notes

Good to know

Wikipedia records the plant as native to Africa, Asia, Australia, Hawai'i and the Americas, and naturalised in many places beyond.
A 2025 review describes it as a pioneer species of coastal areas, resistant to salinity and drought, and in one experiment it extracted 77.8 percent of added sodium over ninety days.
The flowers are small, pink to purple and about half a centimetre across; they close at night or under cloud and are pollinated by bees and moths.
The fruit is a round capsule holding tiny black seeds that do not float (Wikipedia).

Toxicity: Wikipedia records that it is eaten, pickled as atchara, in the Philippines; there is no need to forage it from a garden bed.

Pros

Keeps growing without visible damage under extreme salinity, per a 2025 review
Suits beachfront, saline and sandy sites where most groundcovers fail
Very low water needs once established
Dense, glossy mat that helps with erosion control
Tiny pink-purple star flowers add quiet colour

Cons

Not a walkable lawn substitute
Needs full sun; it is a plant of open, bright coasts
Spreads vigorously and needs periodic edge trimming
Poor fit for rich, damp beds that work against its coastal nature

FAQ

Common questions

Does sesuvium grow on salty water and soil?

Yes. A 2025 review describes sea purslane as a pioneer of sandy and saline coastal environments that is highly resistant to salinity and drought and keeps growing without visible damage even under extreme salinity. A Dubai nursery lists it for coastal and arid landscapes.

How much water does it need?

Very little once established. Water every two or three days for the first month, then taper off. A Dubai nursery lists very low water needs, and rain is usually enough in winter.

Can I walk on sesuvium?

It is not a lawn substitute. It is a low, fleshy groundcover best used for looking at, along beds, banks and slopes, rather than for foot traffic. For a walkable salt-tolerant lawn, see Seashore paspalum.

How do I keep it from spreading too far?

Edge the bed with stone or a hard border and trim the edges once or twice a year, as the Dubai nursery advises. The thick stems can run up to a metre, so the mat needs boundaries.

Is it a good alternative to wedelia?

In coastal beds, yes. Wedelia is a recognised invasive groundcover; sesuvium is a widespread coastal plant that thrives in salt and sun with very little water, and it forms a similarly dense, low mat.

Not sure how it suits your garden?

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