''Haworthiopsis attenuata'', formerly ''Haworthia attenuata'', commonly known as zebra haworthia, is a small species of

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 ...

from the

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 ...

Province,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. As an ornamental, it is one of the most commonly cultivated of the ''

Haworthiopsis ''Haworthiopsis'' is a genus of succulent plants in the subfamily Asphodeloideae. The genus was previously included in ''Haworthia''. Species in the genus are typically short perennial plants, with leaves often arranged in a rosette and frequent ...

'' species.

Description

It is an evergreen succulent plant with short leaves arranged in rosettes 6–12 cm in diameter. The succulent leaves are tapered (''"attenuata"'' means "tapering") and have bands of white tubercles on them. The species subdivides and offsets readily; in the wild it forms large clumps. It is popular as a house plant, due to its resistance to drought and general hardiness. It is frequently confused with the rarer ''

Haworthiopsis fasciata ''Haworthiopsis fasciata'', formerly ''Haworthia fasciata'', is a species of succulent plant from the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. The species is rare in cultivation; most plants that are labelled as ''H. fasciata'' are actually ''Ha ...

'', to which it looks very similar. However ''Haworthiopsis attenuata'' can easily be distinguished by its white tubercles, which occur on both upper and lower sides of its leaves (''H. fasciata'' has tubercles only on the underside, with a smooth upper surface of its leaves). A fundamental distinction is that ''H. attenuata's'' leaves are not fibrous. In addition, the leaves of ''H.attenuata'' are often (though not always) longer, thinner, and more splayed out.Haworthia attenuata - Information page at Haworthia-Gasteria
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Care

Like most succulents, ''Haworthiopsis attenuata'' prefer soil with adequate drainage, such as cactus mix or fast-draining potting soil mixed with sand. They like bright light, but too much direct sunlight can cause leaves to turn white or yellow. The plants should be watered evenly and generously during the summer, allowing the soil to dry out between watering. In the winter, they can be watered as infrequently as once every two weeks. Their flowers appear in November and December.

Varieties

It is a variable species, and has several subspecies, including the "type" variety ''Haworthiopsis attenuata'' var. ''attenuata''. Another common variety is ''Haworthiopsis attenuata'' var. ''radula'' - Hankey Dwarf Aloe (previously considered a separate species) which has longer, more elongated, scabrid leaves with smaller, more numerous tubercles. This variation grows up to 6 inches (15 cm) in diameter and up to 6 inches (15 cm) tall. The form ''clariperla'' has its tubercles connected into large white "bands" across the underside of its leaves, and variety ''britteniana'' has especially big and separate white tubercles. File:Haworthia attenuata subsp radula.jpg, var. ''Radula'' File:Haworthia attenuata var clariperla.jpg, var. ''Clariperla'' File:Haworthia attenuata britteniae peddie.jpg, var. ''Brittenae / Britteniana'' File:Haworthia glabrata (attenuata glabrata).jpg, var. ''Glabrata'' The variety ''H. attenuata'' var. ''glabrata'' is frequently considered a separate species, ''H. glabrata''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q247612, from2=Q64524505

attenuata ''Attenuata'' is a genus of minute sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks or micromollusks in the family Lironobidae. Species There are 21 species within the genus ''Attenuata'', including: * † '' Attenuata admiranda'' Richardson, 1997 * '' A ...

Flora of the Cape Provinces