Gibbaeum petrense

Gibbaeum pretense is a dwarf succulent bearing stubby grey-green leaf pairs and small pink-purple to red flowers. Older plants tend to spread moderately and form clumps.

The species distribution in the Western Cape is small, only found on a parts of the Langeberg Mountain northern slopes and foothills. 

The plants grow in dry shrubveld on sandy and stony open terrain. The species is considered vulnerable in its habitat early in the twenty first century, due to livestock trampling.

Before interfering in any way with a Gibbaeum plant found in nature, it is worth remembering that 11 of the 17 species of Gibbaeum are on the Red Data List of South African Plants, denoting a threatened status.  About half the species of this genus have distribution areas of less than 20 square kms (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; www.plantzafrica.com; http://redlist.sanbi.org).