''Echeveria elegans'', the Mexican snow ball, Mexican gem or white Mexican rose is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Crassulaceae,

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 semi-desert habitats in Mexico.

Description

''Echeveria elegans'' is 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 ...

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

growing to tall by wide, with tight rosettes of pale green-blue fleshy leaves, bearing long slender pink stalks of pink flowers with yellow tips in winter and spring.

Cultivation

''Echeveria elegans'' is cultivated as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that i ...

for

rock garden A rock garden, also known as a rockery and formerly as a rockwork, is a garden, or more often a part of a garden, with a landscaping framework of rocks, stones, and gravel, with planting appropriate to this setting. Usually these are small A ...

s planting, or as a potted plant. It thrives in subtropical climates, such as

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

It has gained the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nort ...

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 ...

. Like others of its kind, it produces multiple offsets which can be separated from the parents in spring, and grown separately - hence the common name "hen and chicks", applied to several species within the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

''Echeveria''. Flowering Echeveria Elegans

Etymology

''Echeveria'' is named for

Atanasio Echeverría y Godoy Atanasio Echeverría y Godoy was an 18th-century Mexican people, Mexican botanical artist and naturalist who trained at the Royal Art Academy in Mexico. The genus ''Echeveria'' was named in his honour by Augustin Pyramus de Candolle. Royal Botani ...

, a botanical illustrator who contributed to ''Flora Mexicana''.Gledhill, David (2008). "The Names of Plants". Cambridge University Press. (hardback), (paperback). pp. 149, 151 ''Elegans'' means 'elegant' or 'graceful'.

References

*Attila Kapitany, (2009). ''Knowing Echeverias'', Cactus and Succulent Journal, Volume 81 Issue 2.

External links

Endemic flora of Mexico Garden plants of North America Drought-tolerant plants elegans Plants described in 1903 {{Echeveria-stub