Species library › Stapelia › Stapelia olivacea
Succulents Well documented

Stapelia olivacea

A small, clumping stem succulent of the dry Karoo interior of South Africa. It has hot summers, cold dry winters and very little rain, so it needs strong light, a mineral mix and a dry, cool winter rest.

Stapelia olivacea
Photo: yakovlev.alexey from Moscow, Russia, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day Cool-growingTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Dry airBand in Plantistry
Light Bright, filtered lightDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

The records fall in the Great Karoo and Nama Karoo. Like other small Stapelia, it is assumed to grow in stony ground, often in the partial shelter of dwarf shrubs, which shade the stems a little. This is inferred from the genus.

Few records carry an elevation; the climate sites lie at about 900–1,350 m on the Karoo plateau.

South Africa

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC BY-SA 2.0 licence, unmodified.