About Crassula pellucida L.
Crassula pellucida L. can be distinguished from its close relative Crassula spathulata by its small ovate-rounded leaves, which have barely visible stalks or are sessile, meaning their leaf bases attach directly to the stem with no stalk present. The leaf margins of this species are faintly toothed. It produces small pink-white star-shaped flowers in late summer or autumn. Four subspecies of Crassula pellucida are currently accepted. The nominate subspecies, Crassula pellucida subsp. pellucida, has soft, green, rounded leaves. It grows in shaded rocky forested areas of the southern Cape, ranging from Cape Town to East London. Crassula pellucida subsp. brachypetala (E.Mey. ex Harv.) Toelken is a variable subspecies that has hairs at its leaf bases, and sometimes develops more pointed lanceolate leaves. It occurs widely across the eastern, summer-rainfall half of South Africa, as well as in southern tropical and eastern tropical Africa. Crassula pellucida subsp. marginalis (Aiton) Toelken is a distinct subspecies with fused, disc-like leaf pairs that are densely packed along its pendent stems, with a similar appearance to Crassula rupestris or Crassula perforata. It grows in the far south-eastern Cape, ranging from George to East London. Crassula pellucida subsp. spongiosa Toelken is found in the Cape Provinces.
