I first learned about the Baby Toes succulent at Trader Joe’s! I just hadn’t seen this variety of succulent at any nurseries nearby. Baby Toes is a succulent that looks like little toes.
Baby Toes is the common name for Fenestraria Rhopalophylla. Succulents and Sunshine teaches, “This ‘window-leaf’ succulent grows tubes instead of rosettes, with only the tips of its leaves growing above ground in the wild. It has white or yellowy flowers that bloom in the Spring or Fall.”
According to Wikipedia, this plant is native to Namibia!
The leaves are toe-sized tubes that have a translucent tip, like a tower with a skylight window. They are difficult to propagate. I am still learning how to start them.
Some sources say that these are not hardy, but I left them out in the winter down to 35 degrees in a pot and under the eaves of the house against the outer wall so that they are protected from snow and hail. The plant featured in this post has doubled in diameter over the past year despite being outside. So, they are hardy for California if protected to some degree. I don’t think this plant would do well in the ground and likely does better inside. It would work well as an indoor plant because it grows slowly and needs very little water.
Also, this succulent has a beautiful, large, white flower! I ignored this plant for the holidays (December), since that is when it is wetter outside. When I finally went outside after the holidays to check on it, a large flower had bloomed.
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Savillum 