Zebra haworthia
Also called Zebra plant, Zebra cactus.
| Light | bright indirect light |
|---|---|
| Water | Every 14 days in the growing season, every 35 in winter |
| Pets | Cats safe, dogs safe |
Source: ASPCA Animal Poison Control, toxic and non-toxic plants, Zebra Haworthia entry.
A small South African succulent that forms a tight rosette of stiff dark leaves banded across the back in raised white dots, which is where the zebra comes from. It stays about the size of a teacup for years, offsets slowly around the base, and asks for a gritty compost, a small pot and a bright windowsill out of the fiercest sun. Water it properly and then leave it alone: soak the pot, let it dry all the way through, and repeat, which in winter means once every five or six weeks. Unlike most of the succulents people put on a windowsill, and unlike aloe, it is listed by the ASPCA as non-toxic to cats and dogs.
Ailments observed
| A soft or mushy base to the stem | Watered again before the compost dried, which is the only real risk. Take it out, cut off the rot, let it dry for a few days and replant in dry gritty compost. Wait a week before watering. |
|---|---|
| Long bare stems and pale new leaves | Not enough light, so the rosette stretches and opens out. Move it to a brighter windowsill. The stretched growth stays stretched; the new growth comes back tight. |
Filed underPlants that will not poison the cat, Plants that forgive a beginner, Succulents and cacti
Neighbouring entries
African milk tree
Euphorbia trigonaA three sided green column that looks like a cactus and is not, with a caustic white sap that is the thing to know about it.
Aloe vera
Aloe veraAloe vera care on a bright windowsill, with the soak and dry watering it needs, why leaves flatten or curl, and how to pot up the offsets.
Burro's tail
Sedum morganianumRopes of plump blue green leaves hanging a metre from a basket, safe for cats and dogs, and impossible to move without losing some.