Cheiridopsis candidissima
| Light | Very bright light to full sun; strong light keeps the chalky colouring and tight growth |
|---|---|
| Water | Winter grower: water in the cool season, keep dry through hot summer dormancy |
| Soil | Very gritty, fast-draining mineral mix (see Soil and potting mix) |
| Temperature | Frost-tender; protect from prolonged frost, USDA zones 9b–11 |
| Propagation | Seed; division of established clumps |
| Toxicity | Not known to be toxic to cats or dogs |
Cheiridopsis candidissima is a clump-forming mesemb from the winter-rainfall regions of southern Africa, prized for its chalky white-blue, sharply keeled leaves and large, pale creamy-yellow to whitish daisy-like flowers, often edged or tipped with orange. A classic Karoo mesemb for the collector's shelf, it belongs to the genus Cheiridopsis in the ice-plant family Aizoaceae, and rewards growers who respect its winter-growing, summer-resting rhythm.
Description
Cheiridopsis candidissima grows into low, spreading clumps of paired, boat-shaped leaves. Each pair is fused at the base and rises into a sharp keel, giving the leaves a distinctly angular, three-sided look. The surface is coated in a dense, chalky bloom that lends the plant its pale white-blue — sometimes almost silvery — colouring, the trait behind the epithet candidissima ("most shining white").
As with many Cheiridopsis, the old leaf pair often dries to a papery sheath that protects the new growth forming inside it during the resting season. Large, pale creamy-yellow to whitish flowers, broad and many-petalled in the typical mesemb fashion and often edged with orange, open over the cooler months and can nearly hide the plant beneath them when a clump flowers well.
Distribution and habitat
The species is native to the arid winter-rainfall zone of western South Africa — centred on the Namaqualand and Richtersveld region of the Northern Cape, and extending into southern Namibia — where Cheiridopsis as a whole is concentrated. Plants grow among rock and gritty, mineral soils in open, sun-exposed sites, drawing on winter rains and mists and then enduring a long, hot, dry summer by shrinking back into their protective leaf sheaths.
Cultivation
Cheiridopsis candidissima is a winter grower, and getting the seasonal rhythm right is the key to success. Grow it in a very gritty, mostly mineral mix in a pot with excellent drainage, in the brightest light you can give it — strong light keeps the chalky white colouring vivid and the growth compact, while too little light causes stretching and a loss of that prized bloom.
Water during the cool growing season, letting the soil dry between drinks, and keep the plant dry through the heat of summer while it rests. Overwatering, and especially watering during summer dormancy, is the usual cause of rot and collapse. See Watering for general technique and Repotting for handling the brittle, chalk-coated leaves without rubbing off their bloom.
Propagation
Seed is the primary method: sow onto a gritty, mineral surface kept lightly moist in the cool season, in the manner described at Propagation — seed. Because the species clumps readily, established plants can also be divided — lift a mature clump and separate rooted heads, then let any cuts callus before potting up, much as with offsets. Divisions re-establish most reliably when taken as the growing season begins.
Common problems
- Rot — from overwatering or from any water during summer dormancy; heads soften, discolour and collapse.
- Etiolation — too little light stretches the leaves, loosens the clump and dulls the chalky bloom.
- Loss of bloom — the waxy coating rubs off easily when handled; avoid touching the leaves during Repotting.
- Pests — mealybugs (white fluff in leaf axils and at the roots) and, in dry stagnant air, spider mites. See Pests and diseases.
See also
- Cheiridopsis — the genus overview
- Aizoaceae — the mesemb / ice-plant family
- Soil and potting mix · Watering · Propagation — seed · Propagation — offsets · Repotting · Pests and diseases