This is probably the most commonly grown crassula in South Africa and well-known as a container plant all over the world, both indoors and outdoors. Crassula ovata is a wonderful sculptural plant for pots, tubs, rockeries, retaining walls and gravel gardens and is the ideal plant for a water-wise garden.

150 species are found in southern Africa, where they are widespread but concentrated in the semi-arid winter-rainfall areas. The centre of distribution of this genus is in southern Africa, but they extend beyond Africa into Europe, America, Australia, New Zealand and the southern islands.

It occurs from Willowmore to East London and northwards to Queenstown and KwaZulu-Natal where it grows on rocky hillsides.

Crassula ovata is easy to grow in normal loam soil, but it must have good drainage. It thrives in full sun or semi-shade, but will flower best in a sunny position. Feed with plenty of compost, organic or inorganic fertilisers, and take care not to overwater. This plant is tolerant of drought, wind and coastal conditions. Although it comes from a frost-free environment, it should tolerate a winter minmum of -1° C (zone 10) but is best protected from frost to prevent the flowers from being damaged.

It has glossy, dark grey-green, oval, succulent leaves. Tortoises love the leaves but rarely devour them completely. Any discarded leaves left around the foot of the plant send down roots and grow into new plants.

The leaves are 30 - 90 mm long and 18 - 40 mm wide, oval to elliptic, often with a red margin and a somewhat pointed end. They are in opposite pairs, the one pair arranged at right angles to the next, and they are clustered towards the ends of the branches.

Crassulas have a special way of reducing water loss from their leaves without limiting their ability to photosynthesise, known as Crassulacean Acid Metabolism or CAM. All plants need CO2 (carbon dioxide) for photosynthesis. Most plants take in CO2 during daylight hours through their stomata (pores in the leaves) and can't avoid losing water at the same time through these open pores.

In Crassula the stomata are closed during the day but open at night when the CO2 taken in is stored in the form of organic crassulacean acids. During the day, these acids are broken down and the CO2 released is re-used in the photosynthetic process. In this way they lose much less water yet can photosyntesise normally during the daylight hours.

Furthermore, during extremely dry periods they won't even open their stomata at night, and will re-cycle the CO2 within the cells. They won't be able to grow at all but the cells will be kept healthy - this is known as CAM-idling.

During the cool winter months (June-August) the bush is covered in masses of sweetly scented, pretty pale-pink, star-shaped flowers in tight rounded bunches .

The flowers attract bees, wasps, flies, beetles and butterflies.