Kalanchoe marmorata

Kalanchoe marmorata is a species native to Africa, ranging from the Congo to Ethiopia, Sudan, and Somalia, where it occurs at elevations of roughly 1,200 to 2,400 m. The epithet marmorata means “marbled” and refers to the characteristic mottling of the leaves. It is also known by the English name Penwiper Plant, a reference to the layered, dark-spotted leaves that resemble blotting papers once used to wipe ink from pen nibs. In habitat it grows on well-drained hill ridges, often in heavily grazed pastures. The leaf markings are sometimes interpreted as a form of warning coloration for daytime grazing mammals.

The plant has fleshy grey-green leaves, often with purplish spotting, and produces upright to partly trailing stems up to about 20 cm long. In the wild it can reach up to around 1.3 m in height, while in cultivation it usually stays a smaller, sturdy shrub-like plant.

The flowers have slender tubular corollas and are mostly pure white, rarely creamy, sometimes lightly flushed pink, with greenish lower parts. They appear from winter into early spring and are arranged in inflorescences up to about 30 cm long.

Kalanchoe marmorata is a short-day plant and flowers when it receives fewer than 12 hours of light per day, so blooming can also be encouraged by artificially shortening the day length. It does not produce plantlets on the leaves and grows best in a bright position with well-draining soil. For lovers of spotted plant, Kalanchoe marmorata is a reliable choice that makes an impression mainly through its foliage.