Succulent lovers have a new kid in town, Crassula wine cup plants. Crassula umbella is a fairly rare and hard to acquire specimen. The plant is so difficult to source that expert collectors have trouble finding it, so if you know someone with this succulent, get a cutting quickly!
About Crassula Wine Cup Plants
The succulent group Crassula has many species and hybrids. They are interesting plants to cultivate and breed. Only true succulent enthusiasts seem to be growing Crassula wine cups due to the plant's scarcity. Wine cup succulents are truly adorable and well worth sourcing, if possible. Not only having a unique appearance but the ease of wine cup plant care makes it a succulent well worth acquiring.
The name, wine cup succulents, is a bit misleading. The plant is a succulent but its resemblance to a wine cup is a bit of a stretch. The leaf form more accurately resembles a bowl or upside-down umbrella, with shallow curved leaf edges. The underside of the green leaves is reddish. The leaves are on erect stems with new leaves appearing above the old.
The flowers are tiny and in clusters on top of stalks. They are greenish, rounded with pink edges. The entire plant will only achieve a height of six inches (15 cm.) when mature.
Growing Crassula Wine Cups
Succulents are among the easiest plants to grow. Although it is commonly thought they need little water, they actually need regular moisture. This plant is drought tolerant once established, but really performs best when kept lightly moist.
Use a well-draining medium such as a cactus mix or make your own with equal parts loam, sand, and perlite. Make sure you use a container with wide drainage holes. Pots that are not glazed are best for succulents, as they allow any excess water to evaporate easily.
Crassulas are not hardy and should be grown indoors in bright light unless you live in USDA zone 9 or above.
Wine Cup Plant Care
The worst mistake in succulent care is overwatering, which causes rot. Once you have irrigation down, the plant has few needs. Feed in spring with a half diluted succulent fertilizer.
Watch for mealybugs and treat as needed. Repot every few years. Make sure soil is dry prior to potting and use fresh planting soil. The plants like to be pot bound and do not need much room in the container.
Since these are so rare, if you are lucky enough to have one, start some for your friends. Simply take a leaf from the plant and lay it on moistened sand. Soon it will sprout roots and can be potted in regular soil.
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