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Description: Dwarf
succulent bodies with exquisite markings, these plants are variably
caespitose, with single or double bodies, or forming dense mats or
cushions.
Profile: Variable bodies, small, pancake-shaped, convex or
concave at the apex, about 1 cm in diameter with a small growing cleft
that doesn't reach right across the body.
Colour: Silvery-green, variously spotted light
or dark brown. The unspotted sides are pink to a deep dark red,
while the apex, which is glabrous, medium green, and variably suffused
with reddish or dark green dots that are slightly
raised, which sometimes join up to make lines and which turn a beautiful
bright red during the resting period.
Flowers: Large with a rich pink-creamy colour and a pale yellow
centre. The thin petals form an almost star-like, spidery structure,
they are aromatic and very showy:
Blooming season: Blooms mostly Aug-Nov.
The flowers are numerous and open at night.
Point of interest: Always present and often prominent markings or
raised spots; pinkish (or white) nocturnal flowers in autumn, strongly
scented.
This species has
some (controversial) forms and Varieties. They are:
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Conophytum obcordellum f. declinatum (C. declinatum)
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Conophytum obcordellum v. giftbergense (C. giftbergense)
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Conophytum obcordellum f. multicolor (C. multicolor)
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Conophytum obcordellum f. picturatum (C. picturatum)
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Conophytum obcordellum v. spectabile (C. spectabile)
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Conophytum obcordellum f. ursprungianum (C. ursprungianum)
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Cultivation: C.
obcordellum is easy to grow. These plants grow on winter rain
and head for summer dormancy. More or less dormant in summer. The plant
requires little water; otherwise its epidermis breaks (resulting in
unsightly scars). Water throughout the year although minimally in
summer, (only when the plant starts shrivelling), but it will generally
grow even in summer if given water. Water regularly in winter after the
previous year's leaves have dried up. Requires good drainage. Keep
cool and shaded from hot sun in mid-summer; it needs full sun or light
shade in the other seasons. Hardy to -2°C. Ensure a very good
ventilation. Avoid to repot frequently. This plant may stay in the same
pot for many years. Plants grown in larger containers have frequently
relatively poor flowers. It might improve when the plants are given
their own, small individual pots.
Propagation: It can be reproduced both by
cuttings and seeds. Take the cutting from a grown-up mother plant.
Each cutting must contain one or more
heads, along with a
fraction of root.
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Cultivation
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