Green Lips in a Flower Pot

by hannah sophia
(grand forks,nd)

Weird as all get out and very small. About 2 inches high. Came without a label or any care instructions. Any ideas? Thanks!

Hi Hannah, this is either Lithops, or a similar plant called Conophytum; both of these are called Pebble Plants, because that’s what they resemble.

Seen in their native habitat, which is in very gravelly soil, in the hottest and brightest places on earth, in South Africa and other tropical deserts, you can’t even spot them.

They’re made this way so they are protected from animals browsing on them.

These plants are somewhat particular about the amount and frequency of watering.

They will not stand for any overwatering, and also, just to throw you another loop, they have the requirement for two dry dormant periods in a year. This is crucial for their health, and to trigger blooming.

You can see more on the page about Lithops and about how to grow them here.

Don’t miss the other stories about Pebble Plants at the bottom of the page.

Hope that helps with your well diguised plant!
Jacki

Comments for green lips in a flower pot

Apr 06, 2015 Repot or not? by: Helen I bought a group of Lithops from a Dutch garden centre last week hoping to be able to transplant them into a large shallow pot along with various other succulents such as Euphorbia trigona rubra, Mammillaria elongata, Sansevieria hahnii, Aloe and Haworthia. However, from what I´ve read, it would seem that Lithops has different needs from all the others due to its unusual dormancy period so I´ve abandoned that idea. I´ve got two questions concerning these plants. They´re in such a tiny pot, would it be safe at this time of the year to separate them and plant them in a more suitable container? Failing that, could I retain the original group and just give them more space? By the way, I only know the names of some of my succulents because they were labelled so please don´t think I´m at all knowledgeable. I love succulents but I´m a complete beginner and all I know about them I´ve learned from your very interesting website. I can understand your obsession. The more succulents I collect the more fascinating I find them.

Apr 06, 2015 Location and zone? by: Jacki Hi Helen, you don’t say where you are so I’ll assume that it’s spring in your area. This is generally when this type of plant will be able to adjust to a new situation, so I would say, go ahead, with care as just prior to coming out of dormancy is the ideal time. However, just because they’re in a small pot and appear to you to be crowded, it doesn’t mean they’re not happy. I might be tempted to leave well enough alone, and get used to the plant first (and do lots more research) before disturbing them. That is the leading cause of death (right after overwatering) of this type of plant, because as you say, they’re not the same as other kinds that might be able to shrug it off.