Crassula rupestris subsp. rupestris | Concertina plant
€7,95
🌱 Morphology
Sosatiebossie · Kebab bush. Small, perennial, and highly branched shrubby succulent, with initially fleshy and green stems that become woodier toward the base. The branches may be erect, spreading, or occasionally decumbent.
The leaves are opposite and decussate, ovate to lanceolate, fleshy, approximately 5–10 mm long, though they can reach about 15 mm. The bases of each pair are fused, forming a small disk around the stem, although this fused area usually represents less than half the length of the leaf.
Its coloration is highly variable. Under normal conditions, they are green to grayish-green, but during summer, with high light intensity and rising temperatures, the margins can acquire red, pink, or yellow tones. This change is related to the displacement of chlorophyll toward the inner layers of the leaf tissues during the warm period.
🌍 Distribution, habitat, and family
Family Crassulaceae. It is endemic to South Africa and has a wide distribution in the Cape provinces, from the vicinity of Vanrhynsdorp and Namaqualand to the Cape Peninsula and the Eastern Cape. It grows mainly on rocky outcrops, stony slopes, and rock crevices, frequently in exposed positions and within Karoo, Succulent Karoo, Fynbos, and Albany Thicket vegetation. It is found at approximately 50 to 1800 m altitude.
The species is adapted to environments with a marked dry season and, in its western range, to a predominantly winter rainfall regime. This relationship between climate and growth cycle is important for establishing correct watering management.
❄️ Temperature
USDA Zone 9b–11b. It is a relatively cold-hardy succulent when dry and well-acclimated. Plants in protected positions can withstand episodes of low temperatures, but the combination of cold, prolonged humidity, and poor ventilation should be especially avoided.
☀️ Lighting
Very intense lighting is recommended, with a target of 15–25 mol·m⁻²·day⁻¹ of DLI PAR.
High light availability promotes compact growth and enhances the coloration of the leaf margins. With cool temperatures and high light, red and pink tones may appear; during summer, the combination of intense radiation and lower water availability can accentuate these colors even further.
Specimens grown under low light conditions must be gradually acclimated to direct sun.
💧 Growth cycle and watering
Summer dormancy. It is a Crassula adapted to mainly winter rains and a dry summer, so it shows its greatest activity during seasons with moderate temperatures.
During autumn, winter, and spring, while there is active growth, it is recommended to water abundantly and allow the substrate to dry completely before watering again.
With the arrival of summer, temperatures rise and water availability decreases in its habitat. The plant enters summer dormancy or a strong slowdown, during which watering should be considerably reduced. In the hottest periods, it can be kept practically dry, especially if nighttime temperatures are also high.
Small, frequent waterings are not recommended during this period: when watering, do so sufficiently to moisten the substrate and then allow it to dry out completely.
🌸 Flowering
The flowers appear grouped in clearly pedunculated terminal inflorescences, forming small clusters. They are star-shaped and have a coloration that can range from pale pink to deep pink.
The nominal subspecies flowers mainly between June and October in South Africa, coinciding with the cool season. When cultivated in Spain, due to the seasonal reversal of the northern hemisphere, flowering may occur approximately between December and March, although the date may vary depending on temperature, lighting, and vegetative rhythm.
A character particularly useful to distinguish it from Crassula perforata is the presence, at the point where the inflorescence begins to branch, of spreading bracts generally longer than 3 mm. This character is much more reliable for identification than the appearance of the leaves alone.
🌿 Nutrition
During the active growth period, Desert CHOICE® Succulents is recommended. Before the formation of the inflorescences, it can be supplemented with Desert CHOICE® Flowering.
Do not fertilize during summer dormancy or when temperatures are too high and the plant has clearly ceased its vegetative activity.
This is an inimitable xerophyte grown in Madrid in a technological square pot and with the substrate activated with mycorrhizal fungi
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