A new addition to my collection, Crassula falcata, known by the common names airplane plant and propeller plant, is a succulent plant endemic to South Africa, from the Cape of Good Hope. The foliage is gray-green with striking texture, on plants that grow to 2 feet (0.61 m) tall. The flowers are tiny and scarlet red, that rise in dense clusters above the foliage for a month in summer. The flower smells like cinnamon and can bloom twice per year, attracting birds and other pollinators. Crassula falcata is cultivated for use in drought tolerant and succulent gardens.
Afrikaans: Sekelblaarplakkie; Heuningbossie
Family: Crassulaceae (krass-yoo-LAY-see-ee)
Genus: Crassula (KRASS-oo-la)
There is good news and there is bad news : The bad news first: this plant is not hardy in my cold climate. Not by a long shot. This means that I will be relegated to growing it in a pot and shifting it between the indoors and out depending on the season. We get terrible frost here in Tarlton (Gauteng, South Africa) and I spend half my life carting my succulents in and out! The good news is that it propagates fairly easily from leaf cuttings. Simply break one off and place it on top of the soil. If you’re in a warm zone, you will have no trouble growing the plant outside in the ground as long as the soil is dry and exceptionally gritty/well-draining. You may even find yourself graced with blooms of scarlet red flowers.
Pic from the internet
Pice from the internet
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