Are you a fan of short and unique succulents? Cheers to another attractive plant from the StoneCrop family, the Crassula rupestris plant. It belongs to the eastern cape of South Africa. The initial growth of this shortie is up to 6 inches in an upward direction. Later, they start trailing and grow up to 3 feet.
The plant grows branched stems surrounded by small, thick, and oval-shaped leaves. These leaves are greyish-green in color. However, the warm sun of summers enhances the beauty by changing the leaves to green with reddish borders. Also, clusters of tiny pale pink flowers beautify the succulent in spring. Interesting?
Enjoy the plant outdoors in temperatures above 20 F. Moreover, it grows well inland, pots, containers, and beautiful hanging baskets. Let us know more about the care and maintenance of Rupestris Crassula Plant.
Crassula Rupestris Classification
Family: Crassulaceae
Genus: Crassula
Specie: C. rupestris
Genus Crassula
A genus consisting of about 200 succulents, comes from different regions of the world. The name ‘Crassula’ refers to the thick succulent leaves, which is the main feature of the genus. Carl Linnaeus officially introduced this genus in the middle of the 17th century.
In beginning, only 10 species were apart. However, botanists kept on expanding it through researches and further introductions of new plants. These plants enjoy good fame for indoor plantations. Moreover, they are vastly used for cultivation and hybridization.
The Jade plant( Crassula Ovata) is a popular member of the genus.
Crassula Rupestris Common Names
The scientific name of the plant is derived from the Latin word. Where ‘Crassus’ means ‘thick and fleshy’ and ‘rupestris’ means ‘rock’, referring to the succulent leaves and natural rock habitat of the plant. Besides this name, the plant is famous for a variety of common names. These refer to the unique appearance, small size, and compact arrangement of the plant.
- Baby’s Necklace Vine.
- Bead Vine.
- Buttons on a string.
- Concertina Plant and Concertina Bush.
- Kebab Bush.
- Rosary Vine.
Features of Crassula Rupestris Plant
Height
- The Crassula rupestris plant grows in an upward direction for about 3 to 5 inches and starts trailing later on. The length of the trailer can get around 3 feet.
- The stems grow to form branches that are woody at the base holding foliage at the upper side.
Leaves
- Leaves are around an inch in size. Moreover, they grow compactly in alternate patterns on the stems.
- These succulent leaves are thick and oval to lance-shaped.
Flowers
- Tiny, star-shaped pinkish to red flowers grow to beautify the plant in winter to spring. Each of the flowers is about 0.25 inches in size and grows to form small bouquets.
Toxicity
- The plant is among those Crassulas which are slightly toxic or non-toxic. However, it is always better to keep kids and pets at a bay from the houseplants.
C. Rupestris vs. Crassula Perforata
These two sibling plants are confusingly similar in outlook. Howbeit, a few differences can help you differentiate them from each other;
- The Rupestris plant is dense and round with leaf-like bracts at the lower end of stems. Additionally, June to November is the flowering season for this peep.
- The Perforata plant has a long inflorescence. Moreover, the blooming season starts in April and goes up till October.
Crassula Rupestris Tom Thumb
If you are a fan of the miniature indoor plantation, this is a nice choice for your collection. A popular miniature variety of the Rupestris plant, this tiny succulent looks quite similar to the C.perforata. As the name indicates, the plant is equal to the size of a palm and remains around 6 inches in size.
Tiny succulent leaves, mint-green with edges that get reddish in bright sunlight. These leaves are about 0.25 inches in size and grow oppositely on the stems. Small clusters of tiny white flowers grow in the warm season.
Crassula Rupestris Care
The Baby’s Necklace Vine is an easy-to-grow and low-maintenance plant. Even beginners can enjoy this unique beady plant in their surroundings.
Quick Guide
Water: Medium to low. Soak the soil and let it dry out between consecutive watering.
Sunlight: Indirect light or shade of medium intensity.
Humidity: Tolerant for different levels.
Fertilizer: Mild quantity in warm months.
Let us get to know the requirements of this cute-looking succulent in detail.
Water Requirement
Use the common ‘soak and dry’ method of succulents for this peep. Water the soil generously and let it drain. Now, let the soil dry out before you water again. Keep a closer look at the new plant to get a better understanding of the watering frequency. Once to thrice a week is enough to cover the warm days of spring and summer. On the other hand, you can keep on going with watering once for a week or two.
Make sure you never let your plant sit in soggy soil. Over-watering can even kill your succulent, so avoid it at all costs. Moreover, water the soil and avoid watering the foliage.
Sunlight Requirement
The Baby’s Necklace plant can stand full sun to partial shade. Go for growing this peep outdoor to help it enjoy the sunshine. Howbeit, direct exposure to the sun at peak hours of the afternoon can cause browning of leaves. This can even lead to scorching and killing the plant. Make sure the plant receives about 4 to 6 hours of mild direct or bright indirect sunlight. Failing to provide suitable light can result in improper growth. Thus, make sure you are choosing the place wisely.
Indoors, this succulent would love to grow in a bright well-lit place with indirect sun. You can select an east or west-facing window sill to place the plant.
Temperature Requirement
A common temperature range of 65 to 80° F is ideal for the majority of the succulents. Surprisingly, this plant is way better than others in terms of its cold hardiness. It can even bear a temperature as low ad 20 to 50 °F (-6.7 to 10 °C). This plant takes benefits from overwintering, especially for blooming. However, these frosting temperatures should not be for long periods, else they can freeze the plant out.
For areas where the temperature falls below 20 °F, they need to be kept warm in winters. So, if you are living in colder zones, better plant them in containers. This will help you to carry them indoors before the weather gets fierce. The people of zones other than 9 to 11, be careful and don’t leave them outdoors in fall and winter.
Humidity Requirement
These peeps can tolerate a variety of humidity levels. However, a moisture level of 80% and above makes the plant look lush and healthy.
Soil Requirement
Just like other succulents, the plant needs well-drained soil with large particles. Common cactus mixes are good options. Moreover, you can also use a mixture of Peat moss and a succulent mixture in equal proportions.
Fertilizer Requirement
Use a good quality common succulent fertilizer in mild quantity. Monthly fertilization doses give good results in the warm days of spring and summer.
Just like the majority of succulents, fertilizer doses are just required before the fall. The decreasing temperature reduces the nutritional requirement of the plant. Fertilizing the succulent after the fall can even burn the leaves and the plant.
Repotting Requirements
No need to repot unless you see the plant prominently getting bigger than the pot. The growing season of spring is the ideal time to repot.
Growth Zone
The plant is hardy in USDA zones 9b to 11b.
Crassula Rupestris Propagation
The popular methods to propagate the Kebab bush plant are stem and leaf cuttings. Howbeit, stem cuttings are preferable over the tedious method of propagating through leaves.
Season
Spring and summer are the ideal time for propagation.
Propagation from Leaf and Stem-cuttings
- Take a sterilized knife and cut a few 3 to 4 inches stem cuttings. If you want to propagate from leaves, just cut a few leaves from the stem. Make sure you don’t damage or leave any part on the stem.
- Let the cuttings stay for a day to form a callus.
- Now, dip the lower end of the cuttings in growth hormone. You can even skip this step if you don’t have the product in hand.
- Plant the cuttings in the moist, well-drained growing soil. For leaf cuttings, you can simply place the leaves flat on the soil and they will be ready to grow. It is better to get a few cuttings to ensure successful propagation.
- Place the set up at a spot with indirect light of medium intensity. Make sure the planted cuttings are away from the direct sun.
- Water sparingly with the help of a spray bottle without drenching the soil.
- After a time of 3 to 4 weeks, the roots start sprouting out. Also, you will observe the shoot growth after about 5 weeks.
- Once the roots and a tiny shoot are developed from the leaves, you can plant them properly in the soil to enhance the growth.
Time-line
Let us have a look at the estimated growth pattern of the plant;
Day 1 to Day 60: After planting, keep watering mildly right after the soil gets dry. Watering properly and keeping the plant in indirect light is enough for the initial 2 months.
Day 60 onwards: The plantlets from the leaf-cuttings can be planted into the soil after the development of roots and baby shoots. At this stage, you can simply follow the Crassula rupestris Care as mentioned in the previous section. But make sure you never over-water or drench the cuttings or baby plantlets.
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Summary
Crassula rupestris is a small succulent coming from the StoneCrop family. The plant grows erect and gets up to 3 inches and grows up to 3 feet later in the form of a trailer. The leaves are green with beautiful red edges in summer. However, the leaves remain greyish-green throughout the year. Small clusters of tiny pink flowers grow to beautify the plant in spring. The plant is hybridized on a large scale to create a variety of different plants.
You can grow the plant indoors and outdoors while keeping it safe from temperatures below 20°F. Enjoy this beautiful succulent by growing inland or making pots, containers, and hanging baskets. The plant can enjoy this succulent without any tricky requirements. Full sun to partial shade and watering right after the soil gets dry is all it needs to grow.
