What is the Lithops?

Lithops are small, interesting plants from southern Africa that are relatively easy to grow indoors. The first Lithops was discovered by William John Burchell in 1811 during a botanical expedition in southern Africa. During his travels in the Northern Cape Province, he found a strange looking brown stone with a fissure across the surface near the town of Prieska. Lithops are able to survive in these dry areas because of their capacity to store water, with almost the entire plant devoted to this function. Each individual plant consists of two succulent leaves fused together in the shape of an inverted cone, although some species will produce multi-headed plants. The fissure at the top of the plant is the division between the two leaves. There is no stem; the taproot joins abruptly at the base of the leaves. The thick leaves can store enough water for the plants to survive for months without rain. In periods of drought, they shrivel and shrink below the soil level.

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