Requires a well-drained soil and a very sunny position. Plants are tolerant of poor soils. If trying to grow this plant outdoors then it will need the sunniest and warmest area in the garden plus some protection from winter cold (a glass frame perhaps). This species is not very cold-hardy outdoors in Britain, it is best grown in a pot placed outdoors in the summer and put in a greenhouse for the winter. It grows very well in a sunny windowsill.

Leaves - cooked. Very bitter, they are an emergency food that is only used when all else fails. A gel in the leaves is sometimes used as an ingredient of commercial jellies. Seed. An emergency food used when all else fails. It is very unlikely that the seed will be produced in Britain.

Seed - sow spring in a warm greenhouse. The seed usually germinates in 1 - 6 months at 16°c. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots of very well-drained soil when they are large enough to handle. Grow them on in a sunny part of the greenhouse for at least their first two winters. If trying them outdoors then plant them out in early summer to allow them to become established before the winter, and give them some protection from the cold in winter. Division of offsets when available, usually in spring. The plants produce offsets quite freely and they can be divided at any time of the year as long as it is warm enough to encourage fresh root growth to allow re-establishment of the plants. Pot up and grow on in the greenhouse until established.

Maritime sands and rocks.