When you have been at the beach, you will surely have seen the delightful Pigface growing all over the sand dunes on the walkway down to the ocean and on the dunes. Pigface are succulents with large amounts of water in their tissues, rather like a cactus without the spines. And their sizeable, brightly coloured flowers are sure to draw attention from some distance around.There are about 30 species of Carpobrotus in the world, including 6 native to Australia. The best known is Pigface or Angular Pigface, Carpobrotus glaucescens common along the east coast from Victoria to Central Queensland. Pigface is amazing as it forms huge colonies covering large tracts of land that would be inhospitable to most other plant species.Pigface is a trailing plant, staying low to the ground and spreading outward. The leaves are not flat but rather triangular in cross-section. This is where the plant stores its water. Flowers are large with deep pinkish-purple petals and wide yellow centres.Pigface fruits are reddish-purple and taste like salty apples, or some people say they taste like a salty kiwifruit. They are certainly a worth-while snack for any surfer or volleyball player enjoying a day in the sun. You can eat the leaves which are also mildly salty, but juicy.Pigface does not merely tolerate sandy soils; it very much prefers them. It is a fantastic ground-cover, stabilizing the soil and preventing wind erosion. The edible fruits are an extra bonus, reward for the hard work involved in coaxing other plants to grow in the garden. And the showy flowers are every bit as pretty as anything else you might want to grow.If you plan to grow Pigface, make sure you plant one of the Australian species. Stay away from the South African species. They tend to have bigger flowers (yellow and white) and are very aggressive.Image: David Lade/Shutterstock