Drought Tolerant and Strikingly Different Succulents

Senecio is a wide and varied genus, most with succulent leaves and daisy like flowers, but there are some that are more like a garden perennial, and you would be hard pressed to see the similarity between them.

senecio

They are all over the map as far as appearance, some have chubby sausage like stems, with leaves that look just like ivy or fat maple leaves. Others are slender and cylindrical.

Some are even more disguised, but one thing they have in common is a flower that looks like a skinny daisy.

Senecio-oxyriifolius-subsp-tropaeolifolius
Senecio oxyriifolius subsp. tropaeolofolius

Many have slender, pointed succulent leaves, like Senecio mandraliscae and S. serpens. These types generally have a lot of white waxy ‘bloom’ or pruinose as a protective sunscreen.

senecio-stapeliformis
Senecio stapeliformis – looks like (formed like) Stapelia

Others look like little vines with tiny green peas or even banana shaped foliage. There’s something for everyone.

senecio-cv-elkhorns
Senecio cv ‘Elkhorns’

As an added bonus, some of them have quite aromatic sap, which smells a bit like some kinds of conifers, but nicer. It’s more resiny, and very appealing.

The flowers of some species are spicy scented.

senecio-serpens
Senecio serpens – Blue Chalk Sticks

They are tough, reliable and hard to kill. Learning how to prune them is important, because if you aren’t ruthless enough, they just keep producing one long gangly stalk.

Senecio-kleiniiformis
Senecio kleiniformis

Add some of the Senecio genus to your collection – they’re fun, easy to grow and propagate, and lovely, in bloom and out.

See more about this fascinating genus;

Find out what other people have said about Senecio:

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Can you identify this plant please?
We bought this at a plant sale in the UK. The seller didn’t know what it was. It’s now about 12 inches high. Thank you.

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Senecio stapeliformis
Spike, variegated, sends out runners.

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Senecio barbetonicus
Hallo Jacki. The photos are from my garden. I do not know much about the plant except that it is common in the eastern mountains of South Africa. It …

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succulent plant with purplish ting
I just bought this 11″ high succulent plants, leaves up to 2″ length, stem and part of leaves have purplish color. one main thick stock which then …

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Succulent with tentacle-like arms growing around stalk
I got this plant at a farmers market a couple weeks ago but forgot to ask the man selling it what kind of plant it is. I think it’s starting to get …

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Succulent clusters
Small clusters of frosted grey-green leaves.

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Looks like donkey’s tail
A trailing succulent with meaty upturning leaves.

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What have we done?!?
The idea was to get a little potted plant for the office, because… office. Went to the super market, bought a little plant pot that had rocks glued …

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Some type of sinuosus?
This plant has finger-sized plump green stalks with no spikes. There are clusters of green leaves at the top of each stalk and some brown hairs on …

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Please! What is it?
This is a picture of my plant. If you could identify it I would really appreciate it! Thanks 🙂 Hi Kianna, this is an interesting plant; it’s one of …

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Fat long sectional arms..
Fat long sectional arms with ivy shaped leaves and short curly vines almost..funky little guy. Ah, I recognize this one from the Facebook page; it’s …

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looks like a succulent (?)
Hello, please help me to identify my plant (succulent?). It has weird shape (I would say – palmate) leaves and the veins are light green on a bright green …

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viney succulent that looks like green beans or sweet peas
i have a what i am thinking is a succulent plant of some sort but we have no idea…our neighbors were throwing this away when it was quite smaller because …

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Succulent with long spindle like leaves
I bought the plant in NY. It is in a small pot and has very long spider-like “leaves” on it. They all branch out in different directions. It is a light …

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Please help ID this looks like ivy in succulent basket!
Green leaves in with a succulent basket at Home Depot The leaves look like IVY. What is this please help?? Those do look like ivy, or Hedera helix, …

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Belgian Nurseries find
This succulent stands about six inches high, has blue-green leaves that are edged with purple. The leaves are flat on one side and round on the other …

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Plant sitting
This plant hangs and has little “balls”. I would like to know what it is..as well as if I can get a rooting? Hi Julie, this is one of my favorite little …

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Green leaves grow from center ending in spoon/sword shape
Green leaves grow from center ending in spoon/sword shape: Unnamed succulent presently 2-1/2 inches high and 3 inches diameter from tip of one leaf …

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fat fleshy green stems, lobed leaves and has just made smelly flowers
It’s quite a fast growing plant, has fat fleshy bulberous stems, green lobed leaves. The ones that have had more light have grown really fat stemmed …

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Blue green long sticks (but not blue chalk sticks…?)
Looks like “Blue Chalk Sticks” but does not grow as they do. In less than a year, these 4 stalks have grown this large from about 5″. They started to …

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spear shaped leaves
About four inches tall with a greenish purple stem and one and a half inch long spear shaped leaves. The plant was free but it didn’t have a name. In …

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From a garden nursery…
Two years in a row this garden nursery has had this succulent and I really like it. It never flowered, just grew taller, but gave my planter an exotic …

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Small round “peas” on threadlike vines!
Just as above…small round “peas” on threadlike vines! What is this?? I love this little plant!