Crassula lanuginosa, a downy succulent
Crassula lanuginosa
- Exposure
- Sun
- Hardiness (USDA)
- 9b (-3.9°C ≤ T° < -1.1°C)
- Lifecycle
- Perennial
- Foliage
- Evergreen
- Family
- Crassulaceae
- Genus
- Crassula
- Species
- Crassula lanuginosa
Other name:Crassula strigosa
Would you like to add a little sweetness to your life? Adopt a Crassula lanuginosa! This plant, native to South Africa's Cape Province, is covered in a fine white down.
How to recognize Crassula lanuginosa?
Crassula lanuginosa grows to no more than 15 cm in height. It is a succulent with a creeping habit.
Branches measure up to fifteen centimetres in length and only a few millimetres in diameter. They lie flat on the ground and root from the nodes. Each stem is dotted with white hairs.
The green to gray-green leaves are also covered with a fine white down. They even have eyelashes at the tips! Blades grow in pairs on the stem and are two centimetres long and three millimetres wide.
The flowers are also hairy. The corolla is bristly and has eyelashes at the margin. White or cream, the flowers bloom in winter and early summer. They are grouped in a flattened cluster.
Like many succulents, Crassula lanuginosa is non-toxic to humans and animals. So you can plant a rock garden and combine your Crassula lanuginosa with Crassula capitella ‘Campfire’ or Crassula capitella subsp. Thyrsiflora without putting your furry friends at risk!
Our care tips
Crassula lanuginosa are very slow-growing. So you won't have to take them home very often. But you will have to be patient to see new leaves appear!
Watering
Water only when the potting soil has completely dried out. Your plant prefers one copious watering to several less generous sessions. In this way, it can build up its water reserves and its roots won't rot. The substrate should remain moist for two days, the time it takes for your succulent to store water.
Place your Crassula lanuginosa in its pot in your sink or in a container such as a bowl or terrine. Water the soil until the water begins to run into the container. Continue until you reach the height of the drainage layer (about two centimetres). Once this limit has been reached, stop watering and replace your pot in its saucer. Empty stagnant water when it appears.
To determine whether your fat plant is thirsty, observe its leaves. If they become less fleshy, thin or hollow, it's time to give them a drink.
Misting
Crassula lanuginosa grow in arid regions and do not like humidity. No need to spray them.
Repotting
In spring, transfer your Crassula lanuginosa to a larger pot, so that it can continue to grow.
Choose a pierced pot and line the bottom with a layer of clay balls or gravel.
Then pour in a draining substrate, such as potting soil for cacti and succulents, or potting soil for green plants enhanced with sand and perlite.
Plant your Crassula lanuginosa and add substrate if necessary. Water to remove air bubbles and encourage rooting.
Fertilization
You can stimulate the development of your plant during its growth phase, in spring and summer, with fertilizer.
You don't have to fertilize your plant to make it grow. However, if you want to stimulate its growth, you can give itfertilizer for cacti and succulents.
Planting
Once the last spring frosts have passed, you can plant.
Crassula lanuginosa They love light but dislike direct sunlight, especially during the hottest part of the day. To ensure your plant gets plenty of light without damaging its foliage, choose a spot in partial shade or with bright, indirect light.
Dig a hole slightly larger than the root ball. Plant your Crassula lanuginosa and backfill the hole.
Water without saturating the soil to encourage root growth.
Taking cuttings
Propagation by cuttings is carried out during the strong growth phase, generally in spring and early summer.
Locate a healthy, flowerless stem. Using clean, sharp pruning shears, remove a section about ten centimeters long.
Remove the leaves at the bottom of the stem. Leave to dry for at least 24 hours, until a callus forms at the base.
In a pierced terracotta pot, pour a bed of clay balls or gravel to optimize drainage.
Prepare a mixture of one-third potting soil, one-third garden soil and one-third sand. Pour it into your pot, on top of the drainage layer. Plant your cutting and tamp it down.
Place the pot in a room where the temperature is always above 18 degrees. The location should be bright and out of direct sunlight. You can, for example, place your cutting behind a curtained window.
To avoid drowning the roots, always check the condition of the substrate before watering: the surface must be dry.
Disease / Threat
Information
- Lifecycle
- Perennial
- Foliage
- Evergreen
- Exposure
- Sun
- Substrate
- Sandy soil
- Planting method
- In pots
- Category
- Succulent
- Tag
- Small pot
- Origin
- South Africa
- Hardiness (USDA)
- 9b (-3.9°C ≤ T° < -1.1°C)
- Leaf colors
- Light greenGreen-gray
- Flower colors
- WhiteCream
Discover plants from the same family
Find out more
Find all our tips in the Monstera application
