Sedums as 'living mulch'

Years ago I first started applying permaculture principles in my front yard. I considered three things very important: using compost from my own compost-heap, having a ground-covering mulch and growing edible perennials. My front yard has a lot of sun and poor sandy soil. So I decided it would be a good spot for a herb-spiral with mediterranean herbs and some fruiting shrubs.

Because of some neglect in the years before parts of the garden were already covered with low-growing plants that liked growing there, in that dry sandy soil. Some of those were species of Sedum. These looked like a good 'living mulch' to me. I planted my herbs and shrubs between those. Now it's about 8 years later I know this worked well. Sedums as groundcover and higher growing perennials is a good combination.

But now (for two-and-a-half years) I rent an allotment garden. Part of that garden is with perennials, shrubs and trees, but I try to grow annual vegetables there too. I do not have much experience in growing annuals. I don't like 'bare soil'. I found out that 'bare soil' doesn't stay 'bare' for a long time. In a few days after 'weeding' new 'pioneer plants' start coming. But the young vegetable plants seem not to like to be in a crowded bed, between many other small plants ...

Now I ask myself: would the young annual vegetable plants like to grow in a bed covered with groundcovering Sedum plants??? I want to do some experiments with this. I already started, planted some Sedum plants (Sedum Sieboldii ?) between the green beans.
Conclusion: the Sedums did not like this. The bean plants grew well (I harvested many beans), as well as 'weeds', but after about a month there were only two small Sedum plants left.  See photo of one of them.


Of course this was only one small experiment. I'll continue trying, with different vegetables and different Sedum species too.
I need to say: the soil is different at the allotments, there's a lot of organic matter in it, it's somewhat peaty.
And I ask you: do you have experience with Sedum groundcovers between annual vegetables? How are they doing in your garden? If possible with photos.

I love sedums too and grow many different types. The one in your picture I usually grow them in a sunny spot as edges (autumn joy etc). They tend to be clumpy and bloom in the fall. The other kinds with fine stems and needle leaves are used mostly as groundcover. Some don't die back even in winter to provide some colors and these will bloom in spring and early summer. In general they don't like being shaded as in a lush annual garden.

May I suggest something I find verry effective and is edible as well.  New Zealand Spinach.  It is a self seeding vine  That in its native habitat grows in rich soil that gets shaded. It tolerates both heat and cold.  Has small leaves in bright sun but large leaves when shaded and well watered.  It covers my greenhouse floor in the summer when I move my planters outside.  Took some pictures of it now at the end of the season  before I clear it to bring the planters back in.

Hans Quistorff wrote:May I suggest something I find verry effective and is edible as well.  New Zealand Spinach.  ...

Thank you for this suggestion Hans. I do have some New Zealand Spinach growing in a garden bed, as one of my vegetables. Because I grow it as a vegetable I didn't plant other vegetable plants in the same spot. So it will be a good experiment to try that too, next year.

Thank you too May.

Here are two photos with Sedums as groundcover between other plants in my front yard.