Mesembryanthemum crystallinum few fruit capsules

The flowers of Mesembryanthemum crystallinum are white, sometimes with some pink. They grow in flat clusters near the ground… as all the plant parts are near the ground, if not in it.

There are five erect, leaf-like sepals around each flower base, earlier hidden by the petals in their prime. All petals of this season are history by now. When present, the petals spread in several whorls around the flower centres. They are very thin, looking fluffy from being so numerous and from not being consistently straight and orderly in their spreading. The flower centres are yellowish, often greenish yellow and sometimes nearly orange. These flowers close at night. Flowering happens late in spring and early in summer. 

The February photo taken near Brekfis Bay, Vermont shows the after-party for celebrating a successful blooming and seed set. Some sepal tips are still present, though dry and brown. Lower sepal parts are very much alive but no longer adhering to a singular colour code. Some are pink, others purple or beige, while the drop-like water cells abound all over them until they dry. These sepals continue to provide the cups that hold the by now black seeds, appearing ready for departure at the first the best opportunity (Van Rooyen and Van Rooyen, 2019; Smith, et al, 2017; Smith, et al, 1998; iNaturalist).