All the information and photos in cactus art files are now available also in the new the Encyclopaedia of Succulents. We hope you find this new site informative and useful.

Argyroderma delaetii resemble little eggs made out of quartz or jade.
The flower are large daisy like. The color is quite variable in this species,
even in the same population:  purple, pink, violet, and white are the most common,
but Argyroderma delaetii also exists in several shades of yellow - you never know.
 

These succulent plants are popular among cacti and succulent plant growers, although rather rare in collections in spite of being very interesting plant for their unique shapes and colourful flowers. What appeals to most people is the fact that the plants will often resembles chubby, quartz egg-shaped pebbles with a silvery sheen of the land they are native too. The plants evolved to look like stones in order to evade detection and consumption by animals.
 

Description: Argyroderma delaetii remain solitary or slowly clump and form clusters of little “eggs” at the ends of short prostrate stems, They consist of a pair of fleshy leaves, either in clusters or singly, up to 3 cm high.
Body (Leaves): Silvery-blue to blue-green eggs-shaped cut almost in two along their width, with a v-shaped fissure extending along the cut. Each half of the cut open egg is actually a greatly thickened leaf, and each year a new set of leaves appears in the fissure, arranged perpendicularly to the preceding pair of leaves.
Flowers: Proportionately large and red-purple, yellow or rarely white, also emerge out of the central fissure.
Flower: The flower are large daisy like from the junction. The color is quite variable in this species, even in the same population. purple, pink, violet, and white are the most common, but Argyroderma delaetii also exists in several shades of yellow - you never know.
Blooming season: Flowers appear late in autumn.


Cultivation: Argyroderma is easy to grow. These plants grow on winter rain and were heading for summer dormancy. Requires little water otherwise its epidermis breaks (resulting in unsightly scars). Water minimally in summer, only when the plant starts shriveling. Requires good drainage. Keep cool and shaded in summer, need full sun or light shade.

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Scientific name:  Argyroderma delaetii Maass

Origin:  South Africa (Knersvlakte, Little Namaqualand)

Habitat:  Grows in one of the most strange ecozones on Earth, the quartz fields of coastal Namaqualand in northwest South Africa . This region consists of flat plains or gently rolling hills  - that seem to just go on for miles in every direction - completely covered with small (2 cm to fist size) chunks of white quartz atop rocky, saline soil. Hidden among the the pure white quartzite or clustering on top of them argyrodermas make their yearly set of leaves, flower and set seed. And their reproductive abilities are impressive. In a good year, with enough winter rain to supplement the frequent fog that keeps the whole ecosystem surviving, some quartz patches are so dense with Argyroderma that the ground is blue with them rather than white and it's impossible to walk (even on tip-toe) without stepping on them. Some plant in habitat have scars or burst in their skins, just like they do at home.

Conservation status: Listed in CITES appendix 2.

Common Names include: Living rocks, Stone Plants, Egg plants.

Etymology: The name "Argyroderma" means silver skin.

• Argyroderma speciosum,
• Argyroderma leucanthum,
• Argyroderma longipes,
• Argyroderma splendens,
• Argyroderma planum,
• Argyroderma lesliei,
• Argyroderma productum,
• Argyroderma reniforme,
• Argyroderma schuldtii,
• Argyroderma brevitubum,
• Argyroderma roseum,
• Argyroderma aureum,
• Argyroderma concinnum,
• Argyroderma australe,
• Argyroderma blandum,
• Argyroderma boreale,
• Argyroderma citrinum,
• Argyroderma densipetalum,
• Argyroderma formosum,
• Argyroderma gregarium,
• Argyroderma latifolium

All the information and photos in cactus art files are now available also in the new the Encyclopaedia of Succulents. We hope you find this new site informative and useful.