Haworthiopsis

Haworthiopsis is a genus of small, low-growing leaf succulents in the Asphodelaceae or aloe family. The genus came about in 2013 when 18 species of the Haworthia subgenus Hexangularis were moved there. Scott had these plants in two groups called Coarctatae and Margaritiferae within Haworthia. Haworthiopsis means appearing like Haworthia.

The plants bear small rosettes of succulent leaves with comparatively hard and thick leaf skins and some species bearing fibrous leaves. Solitary rosettes are grown in some species, others clump via suckers or offset via stolons. Some species are stemless, while others grow leaves spiralling on elongating stems, sometimes 40 cm long.

The tapering, narrowly triangular leaves often have raised, white, tubercular markings, particularly on their outer surfaces. Some species have windowed leaf surface parts and some leaves have toothed margins.

The wiry peduncles of the inflorescences are mostly unbranched, the racemes borne angled or erectly. Some bear sterile bracts below the lowest flowers. The buds are often erect, the open flowers angled up or horizontal.

The two-lipped flowers are narrowly tubular, rarely longer than 17 mm. They have six tepals joined to each other low down and particularly the lower three recurved strongly at their tips. Upper and lower tepal tips are parallel, pointing up and down respectively, not radiating around the mouth. The narrow white tepals usually have dark green, brown or brown-purple central bands showing the central veins.

The usually straight stamens and styles are in most cases included in the corolla tube.

Flowering happens in spring or summer.

The fruit is a three-chambered, ovoid capsule that dehisces when ripe and dry. The small seeds are black or dark brown and angular.

The growth rate of these plants varies much, the genus characterised by both slow and fast growers. Some plants last for several decades in comfortable conditions like cultivation. The plants are popular in succulent gardens, on rockeries, in containers and as house plants.

The plant in picture is Haworthiopsis attenuata, coping with some intrusive Gasteria leaves in a shared pot (Scott, 1985; Wikipedia; http://pza.sanbi.org).