Crassula capensis aka Crassula Capensis

Crassula capensis, or Cape snowdrop, is in the stonecrop family. This family bears the name Crassulaceae. This small plant lives for more than two years. It grows from tubers and a branched rhizome, an underground stem. It is native only to South Africa's Western Cape. Its range runs along the coast from Clanwilliam towards Riversdale. It grows on the Cape Peninsula too. Kew places it in the subtropical climate zone.

Plants stand about 0.16–0.49 feet [0.05–0.15 metres] tall. With good conditions, they may reach 0.66 feet [0.20 metres]. Stems stand upright and may branch at the base. Small, round tubers bear fine roots that look like threads. Suckers can form small, tight clumps around the parent plant. Broad leaves grow near the ground in two to four pairs. They emerge before the flowers or as the flowers form. The flat leaf blades are a little fleshy. Some are oval; others widen near the tip. Most have round teeth on their edges. The smooth leaves are green but may be purple beneath. Lower leaves have stalks; upper leaves often have none.

Flowers hang in groups at the tips of stems. These groups form an umbel or a flat-topped thyrse. Each open flower looks like a star. Flowers reach about 0.07 feet [0.02 metres] across. They are white but may have a pink tint. Most have five to seven spreading corolla lobes, the petal parts. Some flowers have up to twelve lobes. Each lobe narrows to a sharp point. The anthers are brown. Green sepals may have a red tint. In its native range, it blooms from autumn into early summer.

In the wild, it grows in fynbos on slopes with gravel. It grows in exposed sites and damp gaps among rocks. It also grows in moist, sheltered spots beneath rock overhangs. Its home has poor soils, summer drought and winter rain. Fire forms part of this setting. Tubers below ground can survive burns. Winter rain then helps them grow. Ash feeds the soil, while fire clears some rival shrubs. Plants may form larger flowers after a burn. Smoke treatment helps more seeds sprout too.

LLIFLE says the species grows widely and does not face extinction. Yet urban growth and farming can destroy places where it grows. Invasive plants from elsewhere pose a threat by competing with it. The supplied sources give no frost limits for this species. Nor do they give a schedule for garden care. They give no evidence on edible uses or toxicity.