''Crassula ovata'', commonly known as jade plant, lucky plant, money plant or money tree, is a

succulent plant In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word ''succulent'' comes from the Latin word ''sucus'', meani ...

with small pink or white flowers that is

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

to the

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...

and

Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha. The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...

provinces of South Africa, and Mozambique; it is common as a houseplant worldwide. Much of its popularity stems from the low levels of care needed; the jade plant requires little water and can survive in most indoor conditions. It is sometimes referred to as the money tree; however, ''

Pachira aquatica ''Pachira aquatica'' is a tropical wetland tree in the mallow family Malvaceae, native to Central and South America where it grows in swamps. It is known by its common names Malabar chestnut, French peanut, Guiana chestnut, Provision tree, Saba n ...

'' also has this nickname.

Description

The jade plant is an evergreen with thick branches. It has thick, shiny, smooth leaves that grow in opposing pairs along the branches. Leaves are a rich jade green, although some may appear to be more of a yellow-green. Some varieties may develop a red tinge on the edges of leaves when exposed to high levels of sunlight. New stem growth is the same colour and texture as the leaves, becoming woody and brown with age. It grows as an upright, rounded, thick-stemmed, strongly branched shrub and reaches stature heights of up to 2.5 metres. The base is usually sparsely branched. Sometimes a single main trunk of up to 9 centimetres in diameter is formed. The succulent shoots are gray-green. The bark of older branches peels off in horizontal, brownish stripes. Although becoming brown and appearing woody with age, stems never become true

lignified Lignin is a class of complex organic polymers that form key structural materials in the support tissues of most plants. Lignins are particularly important in the formation of cell walls, especially in wood and bark, because they lend rigidity ...

tissue, remaining succulent and fleshy throughout the plant's life. The oppositely arranged, ascending to spreading, green leaves are stalked with up to 5 millimetres short. The fleshy, bare, obovate, wedge-shaped leaf blade is 3 to 9 centimetres long and 1.8 to 4 centimetres wide. The sharp-edged leaf margins are often reddish. Numerous varieties and

cultivars A cultivar is a type of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and when Plant propagation, propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and st ...

have been selected, of which ''C. ovata'' 'Hummel's Sunset' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

Inflorescence

When it matures, it produces small white or pink, star-like shaped flowers in winter. The terminal inflorescence is a top round thyrsus with numerous

dichasia An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

. It has a length and a diameter of about 5 centimetres. The inflorescence stem has a length of 15 to 18 millimetres and a diameter of 2 millimetres. The flower stalks are 5 millimetres long. The sweet-scented, hermaphroditic flowers have radial symmetry and double perianths. The five sepals, each about 2 millimetres long, are fused to one another at the base. The pink or white flower crown is star-shaped and has a diameter of about 15 millimetres. Its lanceolate petals are 7 millimetres long and 2.5 millimetres wide. The stamens have a length of 5 millimetres. The combination of shorter days, cold nights and lack of water for several weeks will produce flowering around the beginning of winter.

Cultivation

As a

succulent In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word ''succulent'' comes from the Latin word ''sucus'', meani ...

, ''Crassula ovata'' requires little water in the summer and even less in the winter. It is susceptible to overwatering, especially during the cold season. Watering excessively can cause leaf fall and

root rot Root rot is a condition in which anoxic conditions in the soil or potting media around the roots of a plant cause them to rot. This occurs due to excessive standing water around the roots. It is found in both indoor and outdoor plants, although ...

. However, a lack of water can also damage it. It should be grown in a porous substrate with good drainage, which will vary depending on the climate it is grown in. It requires about 4–6 hours of direct sun or medium shade exposures with bright light. In regions of mild weather it can withstand some light frost, provided that the substrate is kept dry. ''C. ovata'' may display a red tinge around its leaves when grown with bright sunlight. In more extreme cases, the green colour of the plant is lost and can be replaced by yellow. This is caused by the jade plant making pigments such as carotenoids to protect from harsh sunlight and ultraviolet rays. The plant also flowers in the wintertime, particularly during a cooler, darker, dry spell. ''C. ovata'' is sometimes attacked by mealybugs, a common nuisance of the succulents. The jade plant is well known for its

bonsai Bonsai ( ja, 盆栽, , tray planting, ) is the Japanese art of growing and training miniature trees in pots, developed from the traditional Chinese art form of ''penjing''. Unlike ''penjing'', which utilizes traditional techniques to produce ...

capabilities, since it forms a bonsai very easily when pruning is done correctly. Many who learn bonsai begin with a jade plant, since they are durable, easy to put through the bonsai process, and attractive.

Propagation

The jade plant is also known for its ease of propagation, which can be carried out with clippings or even stray leaves which fall from the plant. Jade plants may readily be propagated from both with success rates higher than with cuttings. In the wild, vegetative propagation is the jade plant's main method of reproduction. Branches regularly fall off wild jade plants, and these branches may root and form new plants. Like many succulents, jade plants can be propagated from just the swollen leaves which grow in pairs on the stems. While propagation methods may vary, most follow similar steps. Typically, the wounds on the leaves are left to dry and callus over. Then, the leaves are placed in or on soil. Roots begin to grow on severed leaves about four weeks after being removed from the

stem Stem or STEM may refer to: Plant structures * Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang * Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure * Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...

. Environmental factors such as temperature and humidity affect the speed at which the roots and new plants develop. Foliage usually appears soon after new roots have formed.

Parasites and diseases

Scale insect Scale insects are small insects of the order Hemiptera, suborder Sternorrhyncha. Of dramatically variable appearance and extreme sexual dimorphism, they comprise the infraorder Coccomorpha which is considered a more convenient grouping than the ...

s are common pests of ''Crassula ovata'' and can cause deformation of the plant during growth. An infestation can be eliminated by killing each insect with a cotton bud or brush that has been soaked in rubbing alcohol. This process is repeated daily until all

mealybug Mealybugs are insects in the family (biology), family Pseudococcidae, unarmored scale insects found in moist, warm habitats. Many species are considered pest (animal), pests as they feed on plant juices of greenhouse plants, house plants and sub ...

s have been killed, as well as new insects that may still hatch after the mealybugs living on the plant have been killed. Aphids are also common pests, but they tend to infest the stems of flowers.

Spider mite Spider mites are members of the Tetranychidae family, which includes about 1,200 species. They are part of the subclass Acari (mites). Spider mites generally live on the undersides of leaves of plants, where they may spin protective silk webs, a ...

s can also cause problems. Exposure to sap or leaves can cause dermatitis in humans.

Toxicity

Like many species from the Crassulaceae family, the jade plant is toxic to horses, and dogs and cats, as well as mildly toxic to humans, in some cases, with skin contact. In this respect it differs greatly, possibly dangerously, from Portulacaria, which is edible to humans and other animals.Watt, John Mitchell; Breyer-Brandwijk, Maria Gerdina: The Medicinal and Poisonous Plants of Southern and Eastern Africa 2nd ed Pub. E & S Livingstone 1962

Cultivars

* 'Crosby's Compact' (syn. 'Crosby's Dwarf', 'Crosby's Red', 'Red Dwarf Jade Plant') -The variety has smaller leaves that are usually red in color. The branches are also smaller than that of other varieties, giving the impression that it is ''miniature''. * 'Monstruosa' (syn. 'Cristata', 'Gollum', 'Hobbit') – A trumpet-shaped, skimpy branched, shrubby cultivar up to tall and around wide, with tubular leaves that have a reddish tint. The flowers are small and star-like, white or pinkish-white in colour. Resembling a small tree, its trunk becomes thick with age. They grow in well-drained, regularly watered soils in bright airy conditions under a few hours of sunshine in a day, as well as in part shade. They have a superficial resemblance to '' Sedum rubrotinctum''. They are colloquially known as ''spoon jade'', '' hobbit jade'', '' Gollum jade'', '' ET’s fingers'', ''finger jade'', ''trumpet jade'', and '' ogre ears''. * 'Tricolor' – A slow-growing branching shrub with stout stems that has round, variegated bright green leaves which are creamy yellow and white in colour. Drought-tolerant, it still relies on occasional water in summer but virtually none in winter (unless grown in container). This variety can also be referred to as ''Crassula Ovata ‘Lemon & Lime’''. * 'Undulata' – A variety with curly leaves. File:Crassula_portulacea_var_cristata.jpg, 'Monstruosa' File:Crassula ovata cv Tricolor.jpg, 'Tricolor' The following have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's

:- *''Crassula ovata'' *'Gollum' *'Hummel's Sunset'

Gallery

File:Crassula_ovata_HC1.JPG, Creamy white flowers File:Jade Plant Blooming.jpg, In bloom File:Starr_070302-4996_Crassula_ovata.jpg, Flowering specimen at a street side File:Addisonia_(PLATE_109)_(8592464390).jpg, Botanical specimen File:Jade3_ies.jpg, Flower detail File:Crassula_ovata_2011_1.jpg, Young plant File:Crassula_ovata_monstruosa.jpg, A 20 year old specimen File:Among_the_branches_of_a_potted_jade_plant.jpg, Branch and trunk detail File:Young_gollum_crassula_ovata.jpg, 2 year old Gollum Jade File:Crassula_ovata6_ies.jpg, A specimen in natural habitat File:Starr 030702-0049 Crassula ovata.jpg, Detail of the leaves

References

External links

''Crassula ovata'' at succulent-plant.com
{{Taxonbar, from=Q157299 ovata Flora of Mozambique Flora of the Cape Provinces Flora of KwaZulu-Natal Albany thickets Garden plants House plants Plants used in bonsai