Succulents
Succulents store water in thick leaves, stems, or roots to survive dry spells. Cacti are succulents too, but most succulents are not cacti: the true cacti have a theme of their own.
Variegated Century Plant
केतुके
Agave americana ‘Variegata’
It can take 10 to 30 years to flower, sending up a stalk several meters tall, and then the main plant dies. Each leaf ends in a sharp spine.
Aloe
Aloe sp.
Aloe leaves are filled with water-storing gel under a tough skin, and their toothed edges discourage animals from taking a bite. Aloes come mostly from Africa.
Gasteraloe
× Gasteraloe sp.
A cross between two different genera, Gasteria and Aloe, which is unusual in the plant world. It has the Gasteria’s speckled leaves in an Aloe-like rosette.
Bird’s Nest Snake Plant
Dracaena trifasciata ‘Hahnii’
A dwarf snake plant whose short leaves form a nest-shaped rosette. Like other snake plants, it opens its leaf pores at night to save water.
Black Rose Aeonium
Aeonium arboreum ‘Zwartkop’
Rosettes of glossy purple-black leaves sit on bare stems like flowers on sticks. It comes from the Canary Islands and grows mostly in the cool season.
Blue Chalksticks
Curio repens
Its finger-like leaves are blue-gray from a chalky wax coating that reflects strong sunlight and slows water loss.
Gollum Jade
Crassula ovata ‘Gollum’
The same species as the jade plant, but its leaves are rolled into tubes with little suction-cup tips.
Kalanchoe
Kalanchoe sp.
A succulent from Madagascar that makes clusters of long-lasting flowers when the days get short. Its fleshy leaves store water for dry weeks.
Cobweb Spiderwort
Tradescantia sillamontana
Its leaves are wrapped in white, woolly hairs that shade them from the sun and slow water loss. It comes from dry hills in Mexico.
Moonstone Succulent
Pachyphytum oviferum
Its plump, egg-shaped leaves are dusted with a pale, powdery wax that reflects sunlight. A touch rubs the powder off and leaves fingerprints.
Watch Chain Crassula
Crassula muscosa
Tiny triangular leaves pressed tight around the stem make it look like a green chain or a rat’s tail. It is a relative of the jade plant.
String of Pearls
Curio rowleyanus
Its leaves are round green beads. Each has a thin, clear stripe, a “window” that lets light into the water-filled center of the leaf.
Tiger Tooth Aloe
Aloe juvenna
A small, clumping aloe from Kenya whose triangular leaves have soft white “teeth” along their edges.
Fairy Washboard
Haworthiopsis limifolia
Its thick leaves are covered in raised ridges, like an old-fashioned washboard. It is a small aloe relative from southern Africa.
More in The Plant Family Tree
The garden is alive and changes through the year. Some plants flower, fruit, or rest only in certain seasons, so what you see depends on when you visit.
See them for yourself
Every plant here grows on our campus in Bhaktapur. Walk the garden on your visit.
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