The up-curved, cylindrical leaves of Drosanthemum prostratum grow in decussate pairs. The round-tipped, green to yellow-green leaves are densely covered in glistening water cells.
Stem elongation spaces them below the stem-tips, while old leaves further down drop off, the old stems hardened and woody. The hairy stems darken to brown or red-brown, while the pedicels are similarly hairy but pale (Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; iNaturalist).