5 succulents that look amazing
Succulents are dear to many plant lovers' hearts, and even though the most common species can bring a lovely green spot into our living spaces, some others are just incredible.
Many succulents have spectacular flowers, but their shapes are also incredibly diverse (Photo: pixabay.com / Christopher Willey)
From the elegant black succulents to the incredibly cute bunny-shaped ones, we picked some of the most beautiful and unique species of these popular and decorative plants. Although the list – obviously – can't contain all of the extraordinary succulents that exist on Earth, we hope you'll enjoy seeing the diversity of this group of plants.
Black succulent
Sinocrassula yunnanensis is a tiny, perennial succulent that – when fully grown – is approximately 5-10 centimeters (2-4 inches) tall. Its typical rosette shape is quite eye-catching, but it's the surprisingly dark color of some specimens that makes it stand out from other succulents. While their color is not actually black, without taking a closer look, our eyes can easily be tricked by the really dark green tones of the plants. But no matter how pretty these dark green succulents are, they're still fairly rare, and thus quite hard to get. Still, we can find dozens of wonderful pics in social media – thanks to the uniqueness and popularity of the Sinocrassula yunnanensis.
The plant, also known as Chinese Jade, blooms in the autumn or early winter in its natural habitat – that is, Yunnan province in China, and some parts of India, Sumatra, Burma (Myanmar) and Bhutan. The small, white flowers sit on top of an – up to 10 cm long – inflorescence, many of them blooming at the same time. The flowers have a somewhat sweet, not too intense, but (according to some opinions at least) pleasant scent.
Bunny succulent
The Monilaria obconica, sometimes referred to as the "bunny succulent", captured the hearts of many, and for a reason. While most plants are praised for their beauty, scent or some kind of actual benefit they provide, the Monilaria obconic is, first of all, cute. The plants' leaves resemble cartoon bunny heads with perfectly round heads and two long ears, and their chubbiness and unique texture just make the sight even more lovely.
The "bunny succulent" is endemic to some parts of a desert landscape called Richtersveld, in South Africa. Beside its leaves, it also has a stem, which is mostly short, with a beaded structure. Although it's fairly hard to get the plant to bloom, once it does, its owner will see something incredible, as the bright yellow and white colored flowers truly provide a wonderful sight. It actually looks somewhat like a daisy's flower, but has thinner, narrower, and more white petals – and the structure of the flower is, of course, also different as the daisy's yellow inner part is actually made out of petals.
Rose succulent
Aeonium dodrantale (previously known as Greenovia dodrantalis), or the "rose succulents", by which name the plant is known on most parts of the internet, has one incredible distinctive feature: it looks just like a rose's flower. Thanks to its pretty looks, on some parts of the Earth, the Aeonium dodrantale is now popular as a "rose-substitute" on Mother's Day, or even Valentine's Day. And when you really think about it: isn't it a hundred times better to get a living plant then a flower that is already "dying"?
Native to the Canary Islands, the Aeonium dodrantale's growth season is in the winter and spring, when the temperature is still quite warm (18-24 °C), but not extremely hot. It's a small evergreen, perennial plant that can grow up to 6 centimeters (2,5 inches) tall, and its width usually measures the same. The flowers are bright yellow, and are part of an inflorescence that can contain several more flowers too.
Dolphin succulents
Animal-shaped plants are a thing: in Japan, one of the most popular (or at least most hyped) succulents is actually the Senecio peregrinus, also called sometimes as the "dolphin succulent", or even, the "dolphin necklace". Given its chubby, dolphin-like shape, it's no surprise that the Senecio peregrinus became a star of the Instagram. On the other hand, cultivating this succulent is (by far) less easy than in the case of the most common species, which might prevent it from becoming this popular as an ornamental plant in homes...
Animal-shaped plants are a thing: in Japan, one of the most popular (or at least most hyped) succulents is actually the Senecio peregrinus, also called sometimes as the "dolphin succulent", or even, the "dolphin necklace". Given its chubby, dolphin-like shape, it's no surprise that the Senecio peregrinus became a star of the Instagram. On the other hand, cultivating this succulent is (by far) less easy than in the case of the most common species, which might prevent it from becoming this popular as an ornamental plant in homes...
The mesmerizing spiral aloe
Aloe Polyphylla, also called as spiral aloe, is one of the most mesmerizing plants on Earth – its rosette is so perfectly spiral you can almost feel as if it was swirling around and around while you're gazing at it. Unfortunately, it needs quite an amount of time and lots of care until it gets really spectacular – not until its 20 centimeters (8 inches) wide will you see the distinctive spiral shape.
The natural habitat of the Aloe polyphylla is in Lesotho, Africa, where it can grow up to 30 centimeters (1 foot) tall, and 90 centimeters (3 feet) wide. By the time it reaches this size, it already has at least 100 leaves and several rows. When blooming, a surprisingly long branched inflorescence appears on the plant with reddish flowers. Each of the red flowers are opening their petals in a slightly different time, so you can see some blooming flowers on the inflorescence for a longer period of time. This way, the plant can basically "assure" the pollination, as it's more likely that during that period, there will be times when the environmental conditions meet its needs.
Anita Diós
August 2018
