Crassula capensis

Crassula capensis or commonly the Cape snowdrop, sometimes the Cape stonecrop, is a tiny perennial with a delicate appearance. It grows from a tuber and may form small dense clumps through suckering.

The plants in picture are thriving here on a damp southerly slope near Greyton on land that had burnt about a year before. The tubers, not destroyed by the fire, are now prospering from winter rain. Nutrients obtained from the ashes and the removal of some large shrubs that previously dominated the space, contribute to the good life. It is said that the plant reaches heights of 20 cm in favourable conditions, although this is probably not often observed.

The distribution of C. capensis is in the Western Cape, ranging from Clanwilliam to the Cape Peninsula and eastwards in the southern Cape as far as Riversdale.

The habitat is rocky slopes, including Table Mountain, where damp spots among the crags are seasonally plentiful, hiding these shy miniatures. The species is not considered threatened in habitat early in the twenty first century.

The Afrikaans common name of skaamblommetjie (shy little flower) is appropriate to the plants size, shady hiding places and nodding flowers (Manning, 2007; Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).