🌱 Morphology
With a vanilla scent... A small bulbous plant that has decided to live close to the ground to go unnoticed. From its bulb emerge just one or two narrow, cylindrical leaves, while the inflorescence rises slightly above them with a delicacy that contrasts with the robustness of its underground organ. Its small size is precisely one of its greatest unique features.

It is a bulbous geophyte with a very low growth habit, reaching approximately 10 cm in height. It produces one or two narrow, cylindrical, dark green leaves that can reach about 20 cm in length. The inflorescence is short and usually bears between one and three flowers. The tepals are white with a marked green band on the outer face; the three inner ones also have yellow tips. The flowers release an intense aroma described as resembling marzipan.

🌍 Distribution, habitat, and family
It belongs to the Asparagaceae family and is native to South Africa, with a distribution ranging from Free State to KwaZulu-Natal. It grows in rocky grasslands and mountainous environments, even on damp rocks and in very shallow soil accumulated between stones. Populations are known at altitudes of up to about 2,400 m, which explains its remarkable tolerance to low temperatures.

❄️ Temperature — USDA Zone 9b–11b
It tolerates minimum temperatures of up to −4 ºC in dry, well-acclimatized specimens during brief exposures. The high altitude of part of its natural range allows it to withstand cold spells, but it is especially important to keep the bulb dry during winter dormancy. The RHS places it in the H3 range, corresponding to approximate minimum temperatures of −5 to 1 ºC in British conditions.

☀️ Lighting
It requires abundant light to develop strong leaves and promote regular flowering. A very bright exposure is recommended, even full sun once the plant is acclimatized. During active growth, an accumulated photosynthetically active radiation of approximately 18–25 mol/m²/day (DLI PAR) can be used as a reference.

💧 Growth cycle and irrigation
Summer growth and winter dormancy. In its natural range, it develops leaves and flowers during the warm months, approximately from November to January, while it enters dormancy during the winter. During the active period, it is recommended to water abundantly and allow the substrate to dry completely before the next watering. At the end of the cycle, the foliage gradually disappears and the bulb must be kept dry during winter dormancy.

🌸 Flowering
It blooms mainly during the southern summer, between November and January in its natural habitat. The flowers are white, with a green band on the outer tepals and small yellow markings on the inner ones. In addition to their delicate appearance, they stand out for their intense sweet aroma, similar to marzipan.

🌿 Nutrition
During the active growth period, a specific fertilizer for succulents with a high content of assimilable calcium, such as Desert CHOICE® Succulents, is recommended, applied once a month when watering.

This is an inimitable xerophyte grown in Madrid in a high-tech square pot with the substrate activated with mycorrhizal fungi and biofungicides.

9x9 cm gourmet black pot