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Lavender Pebbles

If you like succulents, this one is as succulent as they get!  Lavender Pebbles (Graptopetalum amethystinum) is a rare species from Mexico that looks more like moon rocks than a plant!  This cool succulent has plump, rounded leaves in lovely shades of lavender, pink, and green.  The leaves have a powdery coating that adds to the eerie, moon rock look.  If grown in a hanging planter, the plant will spill over the edges 12 to 18 inches.  Or let it trail along the ground like a bed of living pebbles!

Graptopetalum amethystinum

Lavender Pebbles is related to Jade Plant and Echeveria (Crassulaceae family).  The "chubby" leaves are rounded at the tip, instead of pointy like many related succulents.  The lavender or rose shades appear strongest in the newer leaves, while the older growth becomes more greenish.  If you rub off the powdery coating, the colors are more vivid!  The pretty, star-shaped flowers appear in large numbers around Spring.  The plant normally hangs from steep cliffs in the wild, where it forms multiple branches.  You may root the branches if you wish, or even the individual leaves.  This is a true species, not a hybrid.  It will hybridize with some related succulents like Echeverias and Sedums.

Graptopetalum amethystinum

Lavender Pebbles is native to the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains of west-central Mexico.  The climate there is a little cooler than the lowland deserts, so it enjoys moderate temperatures.  It has handled temperatures in the upper 80s (31 degrees C) here in California, and will probably grow fine in all but the hottest, driest climates.  It probably can survive a few degrees of frost, although it's best to protect it from freezing temperatures.  It grows well in either full sun or part sun.  Some afternoon shade might be needed in hotter conditions.  Give it fast draining soil such as cactus mix.  The leaves will keep their plump look the best if given adequate water, however keep the soil relatively dry when temperatures get cold.

Graptopetalum amethystinum - Lavender Pebbles

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