Our December box featuring Ice Plant Corpuscularia lehmannii, Anacampseros Telephiastrum, Crassula Moonglow, String of Button, and Tillandsia Harrisii.
1. Ice Plant Corpuscularia lehmannii
Corpuscularia lehmannii, commonly known as Ice Plant, is a succulent plant that can reach up to 8 inches (20 cm) tall and up to 12 inches (30 cm) wide.
Its leaves, which grow in opposing pairs, are dark green and as thick as ice cubes. These leaves are three-angled and grow up to 1.6 inches (4 cm) long.
Ice Plant produces yellow daisy-like flowers of up to 1.6 inches (4 cm) in diameter.
Full Sun, Partial Sun.
Water thoroughly when soil is dry to the touch, then let drain completely. Avoid letting water sit for too long in the soil to prevent rot and fungal diseases. Reduce watering in the winter.
Well-Drained, Porous, Gritty.
Average summer temperatures from 65ºF/18ºC to 70ºF/21ºC are ideal. In winter, it can survive temperatures as low as 50ºF/10ºC.
You can propagate Ice Plant by division, cuttings or seeds. If propagating by division, dividing the plants in the spring is optimal. Cuttings can be taken anytime in the spring, summer or fall. When grown by seeds, scatter the seeds on top of the soil and do not cover them, allowing light to stimulate germination.
2. Anacampseros Telephiastrum
Anacampseros Telephiastrum 'Sunrise' is a dense mat and caudex forming succulent up to inches (15 cm) tall, with lanceolate shaped green, bright pink and yellow or cream colored leaves.
They can be grown compact as rosettes, but with time they start go grow longer and longer and offsetting to create a dense mat or trail over the edge of pots. With age they also can form a small caudex as the base of the plant, but because of how very slow growing they are this takes a very long amount of time.
Flowers are pink and up to 1.4 inches (3.5 cm) in diameter and appear in afternoon in summer.
Anacampseros grow well in partial sun with bright light enhancing the leaf colors and keeping them compact.
They require a gritty free-draining soil with added organic material and low to moderate watering. The beautiful caudiciform species are prone to rot and should be watered very sparingly.
Feed with a high potassium fertilizer in summer during the growing season diluted to one-fourth potency and mix into the watering can for application. Anacampseros is an excellent plant for container growing. It always looks good and stays small. It look fine in a cold greenhouse and frame. It do well outdoors in raised beds and terraces as well.
3. Crassula Moonglow
Crassula Moonglow has thick fleshy gray-green leaves that form compact square rosettes stacked on top of each other like a tower as high as 18 inches. The plant needs a lot of support so that the stacked column will not fall over. Its leaves are covered with fine short hairs, giving it a chalky fuzzy look.
Crassula Moonglow produces clusters of small pink-orange flowers in winter or spring.
Full sun. Full shade is not recommended to prevent etiolation and rot.
Water thoroughly only when soil is dry to the touch, then let drain completely.
Porous and well-drained potting mix.
Cold Tolerance: Down to at least 27 °F.
4. Crassula String of Buttons
String of buttons Crassula perforata is a low-maintenance, non-toxic succulent. It has a very distinctive look with thick, triangular leaves stacked snugly around the stems. The leaves are pale green with reddish edges that change to a deeper red shade when exposed to bright sunlight.
String of Buttons is a relatively fast-growing shrubby succulent that is perfect for terrariums and hanging baskets. It can grow up to 18 inches in height.
In spring, String of Buttons produces unscented star-shaped yellow flowers.
String of Buttons needs at least 6 hours of light daily. It tolerates different lighting conditions, from full-sun to partial shade, but it grows best under very bright, indirect light. Direct sunlight may help to intensify the color of the leaves, but intense, scorching sun might be harmful to this plant.
This plant likes sandy, well-drained, porous potting soil. You can use cacti and succulent potting soil or mix some peat with general houseplant soil to improve drainage.
As a succulent, String of Buttons does not need frequent watering. Only water when the soil is dry to the touch. Water thoroughly and drain well after each watering. Reduce watering in colder months.
This plant grows best in normal room temperatures (between 65°F-80°F). It can be grown outdoors in warm climate regions (USDA zones 9 and higher). It does not grow well in extreme heat or freezing temperatures.
This plant should be fertilized once during the growing season (spring/summer) with diluted houseplant fertilizer.
This plant is non-toxic.
5. Tillandsia Harrisii
Tillandsia Harrisii is a very unique looking air plant up to 8 inches (20 cm) tall. It has a relatively long stem, with the leaves usually directed to one side, and curled in a dense rosette.
The inflorescence is comprised of five to nine spirally arranged flowers, with orange to red floral bracts and blue-violet petals.
Bright indirect sunlight.
No soil is needed. Sand, sea glass, rocks, pebbles & bark chip can be used instead of soil.
Frequent misting several times a week is necessary. Tillandsia Harrisii will also benefit from a soaking bath every week. Give it a little shake off afterwards to make sure water doesn't collect in the bottom leaves to prevent rot.
See more about Winter Care Guide for Succulent
For Types of Succulents Care guide. Read more information here.
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