Crassula sericea var. sericea

When the leaves of Crassula sericea var. sericea look swollen as some of them do in the picture, the plant is not experiencing moisture shortage. Regular summer drought will cause a flattening and wrinkling of the leaves as stored resources are consumed. This is already happening to some of the leaves here.

The leaf of C. sericea var. sericea has a red line along the margin of the tip. This line may be either straight when the leaf is flat, or angled when the leaf is keeled outside, concave on the inside. The chunky leaf body has a grey surface, appearing to be velvety. Leaves that break from the plant, which easily happens from even a small disturbance, are likely to take root where they land if a little soil is available.

The C. sericea species comprising three varieties is distributed in the Richtersveld and southern Namibia, eastwards in the Gariep River valley as far as Kakamas. The plants grow on rocky outcrops at different elevations. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century. The individual survival status of the three varieties is unknown (www.plantzafrica.com; http://redlist.sanbi.org).