Plant Database

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Hardie-Scott, Linda

Dudleya cymosa

Dudleya cymosa (Lem.) Britton & Rose

Canyon Liveforever, Canyon Live-forever, Dudleya

Crassulaceae (Stonecrop Family)

Synonym(s):

USDA Symbol: ducy

USDA Native Status: L48 (N)

An evergreen leaf succulent, closely related to the Mexican hens-and-chicks. 1 or few reddish stalks bearing red to yellow flowers in a flat-topped, branched, dense cluster and growing from a basal rosette of thick, succulent, grayish-green leaves. Rootstocks penetrate rock crevices and bear small, dense rosettes of broad, drab-green leaves. Borne from leaf axils, the usually 4-10 in. flower stalks bear crowded, candelabra-like clusters of bright-red to yellow flowers.

Many species of Dudleya in California, and a few in Arizona, may hybridize, adding to the difficulty of identification. They resemble Sedum, but the latter generally have flower stalks growing from the center of the rosette or the stem tip rather than from leaf axils, and their petals are not joined near the base.